The Power of Choice
by Hey It's That Guy
Summary: He was meant to be a weapon of death and destruction for a genocidal race that traveled the cosmos. That role is changed when fate sends him, not to Earth, but Remnant. Upon waking on this unknown world of bloody evolution Monster X tries to understand what it means to live with freedom from his former masters. However, the Grimm Queen will not tolerate any obstacle to her plans.
1. Course Correction

It had been summoned by its masters once more. Once more it would be unleashed upon some planet that would try their hardest to resist his power. Once more a population would be made extinct and fade away into the wind. It was his task. It was his purpose. His masters pointed the way and he was forced to obey their desires. For as long as he could remember his masters would force commands into his mind and he would have no choice but to execute their wishes. Whenever he was not needed, or he completed the task assigned to him, he was caged once more inside of this prison of rock. To either wait on the Xillian home world for deployment or the occasional times they had his meteor follow their fleet of ships through space.

He was only vaguely aware of things when inside this rock. Where he was, when he was, where he was going; none of these particulars were known to him. And the _voices_. The mental whispers to maim. The commands to obliterate all opposition the Xillian's faced and not once could he fight the influence. The few times he tried to fight the control he was punished severely. They did something that was somehow able to make his mind feel as if it was being consumed by fire. Repeated experiences of this burning pain was enough to destroy any last resistance he had, and thus he just allowed the his masters to use his powers to conquer.

His mind was fed images of the ones that he would be destroying this time. Small, bipedal hairless apes that had become the dominate species of their planet. They were to be the latest victims of the Xillians. Once their major defenses are eliminated, and the giant reptilian creature that roams the planet put down, the remaining humans will be rounded up and used to feed the deceitful alien race. He will be their sword as he has always been. The deafening voices will command him and he will have no choice but to obey. Thus unless he dies or his masters die the cycle will continue without an end in sight.

How fortunate that this is the time fate intervenes and changes the course of history. For this imprisoned creature and an unknown planet not once visited by those from space.

The meteor that was his prison and transport was set on a course for the planet Earth. That was the plan the Xillian's were banking on so that, along with Gigan, they would have enough kaiju power to overwhelm Earth. Yet when another large celestial body collided with this one, an event so unlikely to happen it could be considered astronomical, it's original course was so jarringly altered that even the occupant inside felt the impact. Granted, he was in an almost comatose state, but his red eyes opened for the briefest of moments as the meteor spun in a different direction than before. How unfortunate for his masters that he would not be arriving to fight for them. As he drifted off into a silent sleep, mental images and commands fading as the damage to his prison disrupted their flow, he wondered if he would ever wake again.

" _What is it?"_

" _A monster that hunts other monsters."_

" _We call it…..Monster X."_

 **Unknown time later**

Unbeknownst to the kaiju within, the meteoric prison that housed him had once more become party to an event astronomically small. Near impossible if one were to ask an esteemed person of science. Like, a real person of science, not one of those nutjobs that believed the planet was flat or some such nonsense. Those types could die in a hole.

You see, it was just the kaiju's luck that the meteor surrounding him had been sent on a path that, eventually, crossed into another solar system containing multiple planets. Of course in the history of the universe many celestial bodies crossed through countless systems. A trip with boundless destinations that would be visited until their perpetual motion sent them into an object that either altered or stopped them. An object traversing the cosmos could, theoretically, move through space infinitely without once making contact with another object. Therefore, it was great luck, or destiny, that this meteor was headed straight for a planet that was distance enough from the system's star that it was habitable.

The meteor closed in on the lush planet, narrowly missing the lone moon orbiting, and descended into the atmosphere in a fiery blaze. Within seconds the meteor impacted one of the landmasses with such force a massive shockwave rippled outward in a path of destruction. Trees that were too close were either obliterated or instantly turned into large pillars of fire. The surrounding land sunk deeply into a crevice, tossing dirt and minerals of all sorts into the air to pelt the area for miles. The residue from the impact rose into the air like a tsunami wave upon a coast, slowly but surely bloating out the sun. The superheated rock of the meteor made up for the loss of light with its ethereal glow. Its fire, and those surrounding it, lit up like one had just stepped into hell. And so for almost an hour this was the scene one would have stared at should they have been able to handle the noxious smog in the area.

Eventually the area returned to some manner of norm. The fires burned themselves out, the smoke drifted into the sky and dissipated, and the meteor itself had cooled to the point that just a light bit of steam could occasionally be glimpsed before they faded to nothing. Whilst the meteor itself had been slightly damaged by the crash to terrestrial land, it was otherwise still intact. No sign whatsoever of the imprisoned occupant within.

Said occupant was doing everything he could to keep his eyes open. To fight to consciousness and escape from the rock around him. However, if the Xillians did one thing right, it was building the prison he was kept in. Unless the rock was pierced all the way to the hollow inside where his body was, the litany of machines that forced his mind into a dazed, unaware state would continue to function. In an ideal situation the meteor was to land on a habited world and the Xillians would use a command from their mothership that caused the machines to separate the rock in a way that Monster X would be freed, and the halves could later be put together once more and used for transport of their kaiju again.

With the meteor out of range of the Xillian ships, not to mention the annihilation of the Xillian fleet at the hands of the King of the Monsters back on Earth, said command could not be executed. The relatively undamaged outer casing of the meteor also meant that the machines inside were not interrupted and therefore the protocol to awaken X would not start. In essence the kaiju was trapped within in such a dazed, near drug-like, state he could not muster the strength to force his way out. As his red eyes began to close and his awareness faded, Monster X could feel one thing to be grateful about; the damn voices and commands telling him to maim and kill everything in sight had finally stopped.

It was with this change in the course of events, a change brought by such happenings that it was impossible to occur twice, that would one day shape the future of the planet he landed on. For now their were none that would know he was there, such were the primitive species that currently made the world their home. However, one day, when the top species could flirt with the ideas of war and chaos, whilst also keeping the red eyed demons at bay from tearing down their walls, those that would come to call the planet "Remnant" would learn of this fearsome beast. For it would not be maidens or wizards, relics or warriors of silver eyes, but a monster of black and white that would decide the fate of all life on their world.

 **This in an idea I have had tossing around in my head for a long time. For those unfamiliar with the Godzilla side of things, just Google a picture of Monster X. He looks like a kaiju-sized Grimm. Just the idea of him on Remnant, where they think anything that has bone-like armor is a Grimm out to kill human and faunus alike, and their complete inability to actually fight/kill him, puts a smile on my face. Of course, in my story he won't be running around slaughtering entire countries for the sake of it. I'm taking a page from the amazing story "Godzilla the Bridge" and making him a being with thought and choice. I rather like the idea that he is just a slave of mind control to the Xillians and without them in the way he would just go about his day trying to enjoy himself.**

 **No obviously, since Monster X is so massive in height and so powerful that the Grimm dragon at the end of Vol 3 would be brutally destroyed with no effort at all, and the humans themselves would stand no chance against him even if the entirety of the Atlas military brought the firepower against him. This creates an opportunity to** _ **make**_ **enemies for him to face. After all, Salem can't have an uncontrollable 3** **rd** **party interfering in her plans no can she?**


	2. Awaken

"Ok guys we've made some great progress this week, and the bosses are pretty happy with the shipments sent. I spoke with Mr. Kawa just this morning and he said that if we could get at least two more tons of rock to them by the end of next week we'd all be seeing some nice bonuses on our paychecks." The foreman of the dig site, a Mr. Fivo, allowed his workers to whistle and happily yell words of satisfaction, before raising his hand and calling for quiet so he could explain some other things they needed to know. "With the amount of copper we've been pulling from this rock I don't see us leaving this area for some time. So, despite the SDC trying to push their way into the deals, we're still getting first dibs over any precious minerals until our higher ups decide to move out. These potential bonuses could be just the first of a series. They are thinking at least a minimum of six more months that we'll be mining, so that's six more bonuses."

"I also got wind that if we can pull off positive productivity like they're wanting, our crew may be getting picked to take the Nirr job that the bosses are bidding on. So if a little extra pay for working in Vacou sounds like something you're interested in come see me next month once I get confirmation." The man pulled up his watch, just passed 3:00, and waved his hand towards the open cave entrance. "That's all I have for you guys, so let's get back to work and afterwards we'll celebrate in town. Drinks on me." That got everyone smiling and cheering again. The crew of 30, human and faunas both, grabbed their safety equipment and headed back into the hole they had dug into the mountainside.

Their current location was in Mistral in one of the numerous areas where cliffs dominated the landscape. Whilst many of the mines and quarries were focused on locating Dust this was one that had yielded a different, but just as valuable, reward. Instead of piles of Dust crystals they instead had trucks loaded with rock and hardened dirt filled with copper deposits. That was just the tip of the iceberg as they say. Once the area had begun being tapped for the vital resource the crews found another shocking discovery: fully processed metals. As in, entire slabs of metal already formed and purified from their base elements into ready-to-use material. Such a thing was supposed to be impossible, or at least highly improbable, according to the scientific institutes that had sent a few liaisons to work alongside the quarry workers.

Steel, iron, and even a few rare slabs of pure titanium had so far been extracted from the lone mountain. Add in the copper that was being extracted, and how odd was it that it almost looked like it was bundled into wiring, this was the most profitable dig that the Motokuni Corporation had ever run. With the success that was projected from the current rate of extraction the shareholders estimated that they would potentially make more money than the Schnee Dust Company in the next quarter. Such a thought, and the pride that would come with outdoing that mega-corp, kept the digging crew where they were.

It was today that things would change.

It was in one of the tunnels that branched off from the main one that a crew of three were drilling forward. Just before they had all been called to listen to the news from the foreman they had opened another pocket of steel. This one, however, was different than what had been mined up till that point. It was much stronger than all the slabs they had found so far for one. The regular drill bits had shredded themselves within a minute of being pressed into the metal. After that they tried a stronger bit, which itself only lasted about three minutes before turning into a smoking ruin. Now they had the strongest drill head they could find on the site and planned to put it to use.

As the drill made contact with the steel the sparks began to fly all over the place. At first the drill continued to spin in place and make the same non-progress as the last two. Eventually though, the drill finally began digging into the metal and slowly, but surely, sank more and more through. It took at least fifteen minutes before the drill surged forward, having broken through the metal to an empty pocket on the other side. The reason they were trying to drill the metal in the first place was so that they could possibly attach a high-torque winch to it and, after clearing the surrounding rock, pull a mostly intact piece out for study. Considering that the third drill head was diamond coated, well, the small group was eager to show it off to the boss.

The second the drill was pulled from the hole a blast of hot, pungent air smacked the group in the face. It wasn't so hot as to burn them, but it felt like they'd just stepped into a sauna while still clothed in their protective suits. And the smell? Like an attic that someone decided to leave closed up after a dead rat was found lying around.

"Wow that's rank. It's like a dead fish had sex with a skunk then decided to eat rancid sauerkraut." The only faunus of the group so eloquently put.

After placing the drill on the ground beside them the leader of their group turned to glare at his fellow worker. "That's horrendous Wade. Thanks for the image that I won't forget for days."

"I told you to call me Mr. Wilson while we're working."

"Not a chance."

Now that the steam had time to dissipate they could see that behind the slab of metal it was nearly pitch black, save for what appeared to be the glow of several reddish lights. Perhaps they were some kind of fluorescent mushrooms or other plant life that lit up when in dark locations. The other side appeared to also be an enormous, hollowed out room that was so large they couldn't even see the top or bottom of the cave rock. Although….was it their imagination or did there seem to be something filling up most of the cavern?

 _ **"Gggrrrrrrrrag"**_

That weird shape seemingly taking up space _moved_ just the slightest bit. Then….what looked like…. _four gigantic_ red eyes slowly opened…..and stared right at the four men.

The haze slowly fell away and for the first time in a _long_ time he could feel….he could smell…..he could hear. So, his prison must have finally been breached in some way that allowed the machines to wake him. Why did his body feel so _stiff_? How long had he been in stasis now? Awakening more by the second his senses picked up small lifeforms nearby, and many more further away from him, and he could just smell them. Hmmmm. He didn't recognize the scent of whatever was close. Even if his masters had taken another form to disguise themselves he would still be able to small the Xillian within their false shell. No. This was something new. Something not encountered before.

His eyes finally opened and allowed him to see the inside of his prison chamber. With his superior kaiju eyes he could also see the small hole in one of the access panels directly in front of him, and the small, ape-like creature looking right at him. Wait a minute…it looked like…he remembered how images of a race of beings that were to be his next victim had filled his head before the meteor was forcibly changed in course. Although partially obscured due to the small size of the hole, X was rather sure that bipedal creature matched that of the "Humans" he was being informed of before losing awareness. So…..where was he?

Forcing himself to move the kaiju started trying to rise from his crouched position he always took inside the meteor. Looking above and around his eyes saw that, despite the activation protocol waking him, the metal around him refused to move. The groaning sounds indicated it was trying, but something was preventing his prison from freeing him.

Well…he could fix that.

"Run! Run now! Get the _hell_ out of here _now_!"

As Wade ran past several other miners, screaming his head off, his group leader was calling out to anyone and everyone within eyesight or earshot to leave.

"There is some kind of giant Grimm inside the mountain! Get outside before the tunnels collapse!" His warning was accented by a quake that steadily grew worse. Rock fell from the tunnel ceiling, light fixture either stopped working or hit the course ground and shattered, and most startling was the loud growling that was coming from deeper in the cave system. Dropping all sorts of tools and mined materials, the last of the workers dived out of the cave entrance just as a cloud of dust shot out around her. Getting helped to her feet by another miner, she and everyone else stared in disbelief at the now collapsed cave. A split second too slow and several people would've been crushed by rock and metal falling on top of them.

Just when the quake seemed to lessen for a moment, Wade decided to open his mouth. "We'll be fine now. Unless that Grimm is some kind of giant that eats mountains for breakfast. Like…a Rock Biter from Neverending Story!"

Everyone glared death at the idiot for opening his mouth. Before anyone could possibly scold him for his cliched tempting of fate, the mountain exploded. Most of the eruption came from near the top. The rock was forced out and away like a cork being popped in a champagne bottle. Workers scattered and ran for cover in the shade of massive loaders and excavators. That tiger-like growling was now heard once more and a few brave souls poked their head out to see what was happening now.

The monster that now was revealed actually caused some of them to faint. Skin, or muscle, black as night. Skeletal armor cover a good portion of its body. Four red eyes. A long, forked tail that was whip-like it was so thin. Over 120 meters of demonic monster. It was staring at its hands, turning them this way and that, as if it were checking itself for some kind of injury. Thinking that this could be the day she died, the female worker that had been the last one out pulled her scroll and set it to record.

"This is so crazy. We're all going to die." She spoke, partially to herself and partially to anyone that might be lucky enough to see this video. Her voice cracked as the monster stopped looking at its hands and turned a red gaze over the humans and faunus within the quarry. "Mom….dad….I love you guys so much. I'm sorry I couldn't give you any grandkids, but this is how life is sometimes." As the monster kept looking at them she whimpered just the slightest when it growled.

"For anyone watching we're at the Hawcell dig site in Mistral. We've been here over a month digging into the mountain for copper and other precious metals. Looks like we found some kind of Grimm too. As big as it is, please, send everythin-huh?" Her crying words ended when the monster stopped eyeing them. It turned its gaze to the cloudy sky about them and levitated, yes _levitated_ , out of the remains of the mountain it had been in. Without sparing them a second glance the Grimm fully emerged from the earth around it and flew off south. Not once did it attack them or even turn to look at them again. It just….left.

She could feel that she would need to change her pants before the smell of urine really set in.

 **I want to thank everyone that has either reviewed, favorited, or followed this story. I just started writing on a whim to get my idea down and to see the response to it has been great. Thank you all for the support so far. I'll try to pump out a chapter every week-two weeks, but be warned I can't guarantee that will always happen. I'm going to be building a new motor for my car and seeing about swapping it in, so that will sometimes take priority over writing.**

 **So for those asking in the reviews I'll tell you up front: He will not be able to change size or turn into a faunus. There will be no romance of any kind involving Monster X. Other kaiju** _ **may**_ **appear if I find that I could fit them in and it make sense. Maybe someone like Orga or King Ghidorah. IDK for sure, so no promises. As for Team RWBY, well, they will slowly become more and more involved in things. And perhaps down the road a direct encounter with X may happen.**


	3. Encounters

The tranquil sounds of the forest were obliterated when the giant monster landed with a harsh crash. Crouching just a bit to allow his body to absorb the impact the armored kaiju swept his gaze to the area around him. The place his meteoric prison had crashed was a miasma of valleys, cliffs, and small mountains. In his confusion and pleasure at being free he traveled through the air until the valleys were left behind to make way for miles and miles of trees and vegetation. The vibrations of his landing were felt all around with the force of a small earthquake, sending animals of all sorts running in primal fear.

Monster X had more important things to concern himself with than the local wildlife however. The dust spat into the air from his impact dissipated enough to allow him a look at his new environment. Blood red eyes scanned the vast expanse of trees around him. Trees that, to the people of this world would appear massive, near 50 feet tall, were nothing to the kaiju. Nearby was a large body of water, clear and clean looking, surrounded on all banks by the trees. Monster X decided to make that his priority, for while he could sustain himself on radiation and solar rays, his thirst could not be so easily sated.

The kaiju didn't really 'need' water to survive, such was his biology, but it was something to enjoy. One of the _very_ few enjoyments he actually could remember. His large stride crushed trees beneath his feet or broke them and left them falling to the forest floor. Animals set to escaping the area narrowly avoided death by virtue of just being so small compared to the kaiju. Their cries and yells could barely be heard over the booming sounds of X's feet meeting the ground. All this was ignored by the monster. Coming to a stop at the shore of the lake Monster X bent down to one knee and stared at his reflection.

He looked the same as he always had before. Bone-like armor over black muscle, red eyes, the half skulls on his shoulders. Despite the unknown amount of time passing that he had been trapped his body was kept in perfect stasis. That was good. He didn't want to become free just to die of a failing body. Reaching down he scooped the crystal clear water into his palm and brought it to his lips. The water wasn't contaminated and tasted quite nice. Whatever planet he was currently on seemed to not be polluted to the point of ecosystem destruction like many of the ones he'd been forced to.

Several more mouthfuls of water were ingested finally ending his dry throat. Satisfied he turned his gaze to the shattered moon in the sky above. How queer that he could see it just as easily as the star lighting up the planet. While such a phenomenon had been experienced on other planets, none of them had a celestial body that was so damaged as this one. Whenever a moon or orbiting rock was damaged the pieces usually were burnt up in the atmosphere of their planet. To see the fragments just…...floating there was odd.

His inner musings were interrupted by a growling to his left. A slight tilt of his neck let him see two figures acting rather aggressive towards him. The two creatures had a rather striking appearance, at least compared to several of the species he had encountered. They seemed to be covered in pitch black fur and had numerous places all over their bodies that a white, armor-like material rested as well. How odd that he would find something similar to himself, even if it was just superficial due to how they appeared. Monster X was reminded of a lupine species when he looked at the growling creatures. Some kind of wolf or wild dog, which seemed to be part of the wildlife of _many_ planets throughout the universe, only on a large scale and standing on just two of their legs. Leaning down he wanted to get a better look at them since in all his memories he had not once seen anything remotely close to himself.

When his gigantic head closed the distance the two creatures backed away for a moment before their built-in desire to kill steadied them. Monster X watched the creatures with what amounted to a squint. They continued to growl at him and employ what he supposed were intimidation motions; scratching at the air, standing as tall as their legs allowed, and growling aggressively. Perhaps that would work on smaller creatures, but to X, whose eyes were bigger than these wolves, it was almost laughable. Maybe they were defending their territory and felt X was an intruder to be dealt with. Maybe they were hungry and _somehow_ thought they could eat him. Whatever the reason X wasn't bothered by them in the slightest.

Reaching his hand out towards the one closest to him X gently placed a clawed finger onto its back and pressed down. With just the barest pressure the wolf was laying prone on the grass, struggling its hardest to get out from under X's finger. Howling in anger and clawing up the dirt like a large mole the wolf could do nothing to free itself. X wasn't looking to kill the creatures, only show them who was boss and that their attempts to act like some kind of Alpha were not going to work. Whilst dealing with the two wolves, however, another native made itself known to X in the worst possible way. A screeching noise to his right caught his attention and as he turned his body several small projectiles of some kind bounced off his armored body.

Some kind of avian animal kept itself level with his head and was much the same as the two he'd already encountered. Like the wolves it had a black coloration with select places covered in white, bone material. It was mostly centered around the skull and beak area, with some light armor over scaled legs. Seeing that whatever it had done caused no damage X stared at the animal as if asking what else it was going to do. A flap of its wings sent razor sharp feathers at him with speed those living on the planet would call impressive. Just as before the feathers bounced off his body, unable to pierce either skin or armor. The avian creature seemed to not know what to do since neither attack had done anything to harm the kaiju. X had a solution to the problem though.

Bringing his right hand up to the bird X held his middle finger down with his thumb and after putting a bit of strength behind it, unleashed the 'attack' against the avian. Flicking the beast away with enough power to get rid of it, but not take its head off, the bird yelped like a dog with its tail stepped on. The animal went flying out of sight, disappearing into the woods on the other side of the lake, black feathers trailing into the air behind it. Seeing their bird friend getting demolished with no effort by the giant kaiju caused all aggression and fight to leave the two wolves. The one still held down by X stopped moving, afraid it would suddenly be pierced by the claw on his back. The other took a step or two back, wondering if it could get into the woods before the monster could kill him.

X was not particularly interested in killing either creature and instead went to get another handful water. He finally let up the animal he had been holding down and decided to ignore them. While he had no kind of psychic powers or abilities he did have an ability to sense energy within other beings. These armored creatures however….seemed to be empty of the life energy most animals contained. It was rather odd, but not something to worry about at this time. What was really on his mind was finding a place to make into a home of some kind. A place to rest and have space to relax. After being trapped for who knows how long, the chance to just be within the open was rather nice.

The two Beowolves eyed the monster that could have ended their lives, but let them continue to exist, then looked at each other. Contrary to what the humans thought they had some degree of intellect. They wouldn't be solving complex equations or thinking new philosophy, but Grimm could still think. This monster was not one of them, nor was it like the animals that roamed the world. It almost felt like the humans they hunted. The predator within each of them could feel the life within the monster and as such that had caused them to decide to attack it initially. It was their natural reaction. Now, however, they kept their red gaze upon the large monster. It stood back up to full height and started to walk away, feet crushing the ground below with thunderous footsteps. The two Grimm were curious about this monster and so set to a quick pace after it. Seeing how strong the monster had been was intriguing to the Beowolves and they wanted to see more of this giant.

 **Hawcell Dig Site**

One could look left, right, front, and back and see, not the hustle and bustle of a quarry crew, but police, huntsmen, huntresses, medical personnel, government officials, and even some military troops. Interviews were being conducted, evidence was being collected, and plans were being formulated. A tent had been set up that was basically 'HQ' for the operation going on. Several photos had been pinned to a board showing the large Grimm that emerged from the mountain; photos of the Grimm looking at those within the quarry and even a photo of the monster flying into the air. Some notes had been written down on a whiteboard with theories on the Grimm. Why it had been inside the mountain, why it had not attacked, where it was going when it left, and what steps to possibly take in order to protect the people.

One person, however, was looking over something that had been brought into the tent half an hour ago. When a team of huntsmen had gone into the tunnel where the creature was first seen, they had returned with some items that blew the mind of many. Lights, speakers, wiring, _computer chips_ , some kind of air system that contained a substance almost like liquid nitrogen, and other such things. The mystery of what these items were and what they were doing inside the mountain, with a giant Grimm thrown in to the mix as well, was just purely baffling. The investigation had really just begun, but already they had questions upon questions and not a single concrete answer to any of them.

One young scientist, a bearded dragon faunus, couldn't have stopped smiling if someone had put a gun to his head. The materials that he was given the chance to look over were amazing. Wiring the likes made out of a material the likes they couldn't identify, computer chips that made the most advanced Atlas hardware look like a toy, etc. Wherever these things had come from they wanted to learn how to make them and utilize them.

He himself had a small notepad that a few things had been jotted down into. The most important thing being: _Grimm within mountain, mountain itself filled with advanced technology and materials. Connected somehow? Why did Grimm not attack?_

His scroll rang then, signaling that he was getting a call from someone. Irritated with the interruption the young man grabbed his scroll and instantly went from irritated to happy upon seeing who was calling. It was his old headmaster from when he went to school before then going to university to become a physicist.

"Headmaster Ozpin how are you? Me? Well I'm doing pretty well for myself. I'm a bit busy right now, but how can I help you? Huh? Yeah I'm here helping with the investigation. How'd you know about it? It's supposed to be kinda secret. Oh. I've not got very far, but I have found some interesting things."

 **I'd been trying to get this out sooner, but have had some unfortunate things happen with my job that kind of put me out of the writing mood. Suffice to say that I'm going to another employer the first chance I get. Anyway, X will be doing some…..stuff here and there, and Remnant is just going to have to deal with it. If Ozpin somehow already knows about what happened, he'll explain later, then I wonder if Salem does too.**


	4. Grimm Standing

One would imagine that the sight of a monstrous kaiju laying atop trees it had smashed down into a makeshift bed, staring at the starry sky above could be cause for concern. X, however, was far away from human eyes at the moment, and was being kept company by those who couldn't tell anyone regardless. Three days had passed since his escape from his prison. Three days to become used to all the sensations and feelings that were practically new to him. Whilst he was had been a slave to the Xilians the control over his mind caused him to be in a constant state where it felt as if he was trapped underwater. Sounds were muted, vision was blurred, movement because sluggish outside of combat.

Yet now…now it was like he was truly alive for the first time. He had yet to venture out from this area, and had no real desire to at the moment, and chose to stay next to the lake he'd discovered. With the sun having fell for the day, the forest around him became a symphony of noise. Most of the animals had yet to return to the woods, terrified of just his presence, but their were some that had no problem doing so. The chirping of crickets sounded with a steady rhythm that mixed well with the constant humming of cicadas. The caws, hoots, and cries of numerous birds added to the noise, further creating a soothing lullaby that X rather liked.

His fiery eyes continued to gaze at the infinite cosmos above. For so long he had traveled those very stars, against his will, and seen many a planet meet a destructive end. Now, on this one, he had _no clue_ what to do. What was a being such as him supposed to do? Three days and nights of laying in this forest and not one idea could form in his mind that was sound. Burning the planet to ashes of his own free will was not going to happen. He'd had quite enough senseless death as far as he was concerned. The idea of finding a mate and having offspring was dead since he was the only one of his kind. Traveling the cosmos wasn't appetizing either, since most of his memories were of being stuck inside a meteor making its way through that same space.

Perhaps he would have no real purpose. At least for some time that is. It could be that he just needed more time to adjust to the feelings he was experiencing. In the meantime he would watch over the territory he'd claimed. He didn't fear the native beings of this world, but rather the idea that his masters could be looking for him and he had no real way to know. If they existed still, and sought to claim him as their tool of war once more, he would utterly annihilate them without mercy. One thing he did know with absolution was that he would never again be a slave to others.

 **"** **Grrrrrr."**

 **"Caaawwwww. Cawwww"**

 **"Squueeee"**

 **"Grrrrrrrr"**

Oh yeah, and he currently had some rather odd…companions? Followers? He wasn't really sure what to think of them as. Rolling onto his left side to look over the small group that apparently wanted to be in close proximity with him for reasons unknown. The two wolves that he'd encountered upon finding this lake had decided to stay around him, as well as the avian one that he had dispatched. A second avian kept close to its other, being a smaller size and less armored. A short, stubby one that had tusks and plates along the back shuffled next to a very large, stocky creature with spikes around the shoulder area.

It looked like they were roughhousing again. Only, unlike the first time it had happened, this go around X wasn't too bothered by the behavior and simply let them be. X remembered clearly what happened yesterday as he was attempting to take a minor nap that had led to them behaving this way.

 **2:00pm the day before**

They just wouldn't stop! For whatever reason the idiotic armored creatures continued to attack him in an attempt to cause harm. Well, the wolves hadn't, but so far several others had joined up with them and they constantly made aggressive noises towards him followed by an insignificant physical display.

Feathers failed to penetrate his body, strong blows did nothing to damage him, and even when the tusked one gained speed it just bounced off and ended up making itself dizzy. Yet they tried and tried over and over without any end in sight. They weren't able to harm him of course, but he wanted to sleep and their interruptions prevented that. Another round of feathers bouncing off him finally prompted a response out of him. It was time to make them stop.

He sat up and turned his body towards the ragtag group of Grimm that had for some reason decided he was an enemy. The stare-down between kaiju and Grimm lasted several seconds before the Grimm started to vocalize their aggression once more. Not this time. X's red eyes flashed gold as he flared out a pulse of keizer energy from within. The golden energy struck each of the Grimm with enough force to send them to the ground in a daze. For several moments sparks of golden energy arched around their bodies as if they'd just tried to rip a transformer off an electrical pole. While the easier response would have been to just obliterate them using his gravity beams, X felt that to fill them with keizer energy was the better answer. Perhaps now they would quit messing around like idiots.

After a minute of twitching and near seizure-like movements the gathered Grimm finally were able to make it back to their feet. Unlike before, where they'd been either aggressive towards him or a bit hostile towards each other, now they just…stared off into nothing. It only lasted a moment before the Grimm started to look around themselves with a sudden case of almost childish curiosity. X kept his gaze on them in case they made the poor decision to try and attack him again.

 **"Caaawww"**

The smaller of the avian Grimm trotted over to X mildly. It's stance wasn't aggressive and if anything it looked like a startled deer. The distance closed between the Grimm and X's hand that was propping him up. Moving quite slowly the Nevermore began to rub it's armored beak against the kaiju. X tilted his head just the slightest at the behavior. Odd. A moment ago these creatures were attacking him nonstop despite causing no harm at all. Now all that aggression seemed to have evaporated and been replaced with…whatever this creature was now feeling. X wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do about this now, so he settled for running his finger atop it's head. Apparently returning the affection proved the right thing as it earned him a chirp in return.

His eyes moved over the others and saw that they were still calm and just…eyeing him like they didn't know what was really going on. Before he could really think of what to do the affectionate Nevermore turned around and tackle one of the Beowolves. The two rolled around making noises and roughhousing like one would expect from a couple of kids. Feeling that everything would be ok X went back to doing his best to fall asleep.

 **Present day**

X watched them play for several minutes and also noticed that the bulky one, an Ursa, and the tusked one, a Boarbatusk, made their noises at each other as if the two were having a conversation. X remembered how they made aggressive noises at him like a predator would, but the noises to the others was clearly different. They hadn't shown any ability to communicate like this before his surge of keizer energy, and even then it was only within the last hour they'd displayed this trait. The kaiju wasn't really sure what to make of that. It wasn't that he was stupid, he just didn't have any experience with something like this having been a weapon to the Xilians. He could sense that there was a _bit_ of keizer energy that filled their bodies, much like his own. It was small, but it was there. So what was his solution? He'd just go back to sleep and not worry about it.

Eventually he would need to explore this planet and get a better understanding of the native species that dominated it. For now however, he would continue to enjoy this large forest he claimed as his territory. Perhaps he would step into the lake and cleanse himself of grime that had clearly accumulated whilst in stasis. Just as he started to close his eyes to get another night of sleep he felt both of the Beowolves nudge his hand and snuggle into it. Looking at them one last time he found it odd that they appeared to be going to sleep like him. He was pretty sure they didn't do that before.

 **Grimmlands**

Deep within her palace the Queen of the Grimm Salem scowled heavily while looking through a window at her kingdom. Just a day ago she had felt something _powerful_ affect some of her children, immediately cutting them off from her senses. Every Grimm that she created was connected to her in such a way that if needed she could see through their eyes. When they were killed by huntsman she could feel it easily. It had a feeling like what one would feel if they had a sunburn; a little pain, but more of an irritant. What happened yesterday was entirely different. Instead of that irritant the feeling that coursed through her was…almost empty. Salem lost contact with some Grimm and that was the end. No pain, but leftover feelings, nothing. They just weren't there. Something like this would not do.

The problem needed to be investigated, and as such she felt that perhaps some of her children needed to handle this. **"Come."** Her whisper was answered by a newborn Geist, the creature barely an hour into life, floating before her attentively. **"There is a disturbance that needs to be looked into. You will go to Mistral and find this disturbance, and if necessary, eliminate it. If you find nothing then return to me. Now go."** Her dismissal wasn't even finished before the Geist was zooming out of the palace window towards the kingdom of Mistral. Salem had things to take care of, mainly involving the finding of the Maidens and the Relics. Whatever this minor distraction was would be handled and buried before it could even think of manifesting. There was the chance that this was literally nothing, just an anomaly, but Salem had not lived as long as she had by leaving things to chance. That was that fool Ozpin's arena. No. She met things that opposed her with planning and force. This would be no different.

Oh, if only her future self could warn her.

 **Hawcell dig site**

"Just a few wires here, plug this in, set the power output…aaaaaannnnndddddd it's done. This should transmit electrical data onto the scroll and give us access to anything that might be coded into the chip." The young scientist, the same bearded dragon faunus that Ozpin had contacted, smiled as he carefully connected one of the many computer chips recovered from the mountain into a self-made conduit that would transfer information over to the military-grade scroll he was issued.

Standing next to him was General James Ironwood of the Atlas Military. He had only arrived just this afternoon, under orders from the Atlesian council to provide any and all support to those already on site helping with the incident. Under normal circumstances playing a glorified babysitter would sit rather ill with him. However, the ramifications of the situation were understandable as to why Atlas wanted him there. Mistral themselves had plenty of people that could handle the more minute things, thus there was no need for any micro-managing by the general. But Atlas' council believed a man of his caliber needed to be involved here, with visual and media evidence of a truly titanic Grimm breaking free of the mountain and disappearing.

"Any idea as to what kind of information we may have on this chip Doctor Malau?"

The scientist shook his head, scaled frill swaying with each movement. "It could be literally anything. Perhaps text files, or maybe some audio ones. With everything that we're _still_ excavating from the mountain there is really no way to know. For all we know, this could have cooking instructions on how to boil fish. That's even if we can properly decode any data successfully extracted." He looked away from the processing scroll to the general, "One of the metallurgists told me that the carbon dating on the metal they've recovered is nearly 100,000 years old and the metal itself doesn't match anything we have on record."

James frowned heavily at the news, having not heard as such himself before now. "Is this person reliable? The information accurate and credible?"

Malau nodded his head while checking that the receptacles on the wiring were still making solid contact. "Metallurgy isn't a field I'm well versed in, but she was quite sure of her results. I know her name in the scientific community is highly respected, so I have little reason to think her findings false." Before he could elaborate further his scroll signaled that it had finished the download as best it could.

Ironwood moved closer to the table with hands clasped behind him. He did his best not to show any excitement that the process had thankfully been much shorter than he expected. "What do we have?"

Tapping a few commands on the screen of his scroll, then typing away on the connected keyboard fast enough for his hands to blur, Doctor Malau didn't respond immediately as he booted up what his scroll classified as 'files' from the data. "If what I'm seeing is correct then we may be in luck. This data chip appears to have several files, or what we would think of as files, stored in the memory banks. This isn't going to be perfect, and there is a good chance that we will have to possibly put anything that isn't corrupted through decoding algorithms."

"As old as this would appear to be there is no telling if we'll be able to understand the data for now, if at all, so I suggest not getting your hopes up general."

Just as the scientist finished speaking his scroll started to display a grainy picture of what looked like some kind of insect sitting in a large chair across from another in a fancier chair. They were making weird movements with their arms and mandible-like mouths that were otherworldly to the two humans. Both men looked at the screen then at each other. Confusion blanketed their faces at the sight upon the screen, as this was really the last thing either thought they'd find.

"What the hell is this?" James frowned at the image that seemed to cut out and loop back every twelve seconds.

 **So I may finally be getting a new job soon. Same type of stuff, answering phones to help with credit cards, but it's all corporate stuff. No personal shit from some asshole that is mad he can't by a tv at Best Buy and tears into me like I personally shut of his credit card. Wish me luck that they call me back. :)**

 **That's been part of why this one is late. Work has just killed my desire to write and this chapter took WAY too long because of that. But as for the chapter, I wonder what's going on with those Grimm? Hmmm.**


	5. One Of Us

The Ursa slammed it's hands into the thick tree as hard as he could. Said tree groaned as it fell over and hit the ground. It joined another that had already been knocked down. The large Grimm looked at both trees then at it's right hand. It had always known on some kind of primal level that it was strong and could use that strength to it's advantage. However, it never really tested how strong it truly was. Over the last few days a feeling had begun to stir within itself. The feeling: What was it? To be more specific; what was the Ursa?

The other Grimm were like him, being Grimm, but they were also different. The Beowolves were quick, the Boarbatusk was tough, and the Nevermore were nimble when in the air. Itself? It could knock over trees because of the massive strength afforded to it. Why? What purpose did such strength amount to? Such…..thoughts had been coming forward over the last week. Ever since the giant did whatever it was it did. Now it wasn't just looking for humans to kill. Now it…...had no purpose.

 **"Oink squeee squeee"** Turning to look at the Boarbatusk next to it the Ursa watched with confusion as the other Grimm was using it's front legs and large tusks to tear into the ground. The pig Grimm seemed to be making a rough crevice just large enough to surround it's body. It wasn't very deep, but the Boarbatusk managed to clear out the grass and several buried rocks leaving a circular spot of dirt. Looking over it's work the Grimm nodded before plopping down into the dirt and rolling in it like a little kid. Patches of dirt clung to it's skin and even a little on the armored plating upon it's back. This behavior went on for a whole minute, until the Boarbatusk breathed in deeply and seemed to sigh contently. Having made itself a nice resting spot the Grimm stared off into nothing and enjoyed itself.

The Ursa gave what amounted to be a shrug and laid down on it's stomach, stretching out and enjoying the feel of the grass on it's chin. It could remember how before the encounter with the giant being the only thing on it's mind was killing any human or faunus it came across. Now it just wanted…...to exist if it could really put any particular desire to itself. Several minutes passed as the Ursa and the Boarbatusk both laid upon the ground in satisfaction. Their relaxation was interrupted by growls from the treeline. Both Grimm sat up and watched with confusion as the two Beowolves that had become part of their pack pulled an animal into the area they considered their territory.

It appeared to be a large male deer, obviously dead from it's lack of movement, blood staining the ground as it was brought closer to the Ursa and Boarbatusk. The duo sat up from their 'beds' and watched as the Beowolves tossed it in front of them. The creature's throat was coated in blood where the killing blow had been dealt, and a bloody spot marred a hindquarter from the initial attack. Otherwise the carcass was undamaged and sported a healthy amount of meat. The four Grimm stared at the dead animal for several moments before the smaller of the two Beowolves sank it's teeth into the shoulder area, tearing out a mouthful of meat. The other three watched it begin to chew for a few moments before they too took a mouthful of deer meat. In the past they always had a desire to kill and consume humans, whilst leaving the wildlife alone unless they interfered in some way.

Now though, now they could feel some part of themselves liking the meat from the animal. Unbeknownst to the group of Grimm, the Keizer energy that had affected them was the cause of such a desire. Whereas before they would have no need or inclination to eat for sustenance, deep within that function was now beginning to grow. Each Grimm chewed their bite of meat until it was tender, then they swallowed said meat. For a moment none of said Grimm moved until, after a dilation of their red eyes, they suddenly tore into the corpse like it was their lifeline. It was as if some primal need had been awoken inside of the Grimm. As if, instead of the desire to hunt and kill humans, they were just…...hungry. Within minutes most of the good meat had been stripped from the dead deer, leaving the four Grimm satisfied in a way they didn't fully understand.

At the water's edge the two Nevermore that were part of the pack also experienced such a phenomenon. Wading into the shallows slowly the two birds tilted their necks to watch the fish swim around, seemingly oblivious to the predators amongst them. Quick as lightning they struck, beaks piercing the surface of the water and coming back up with a fish for each of them. Much like a stork they didn't need to chew the fish, instead lifting their heads so that the fish were swallowed whole. The Nevermore felt an odd enjoyment from eating the fish, something, like their compatriots, they had never felt before. Another stray thought had the larger Nevermore lean down to scoop a mouthful of crystal water. It savored the taste buds upon the Grimm's tongue that hadn't existed before. Seeing it's brethren drinking water the second Nevermore copied the behavior. A growling sound behind them had the two switching their attention to the rest of the pack.

A Geist was hovering before the group, it's head tilted in what amounted to confusion, not understanding why these other Grimm were eating something not Human. The Mistress had sent it to locate the source of the disturbance that she had felt a week ago. Strangely, it could sense the energy she was looking for within this group of fellow Grimm. However, while they felt similar, they didn't feel exactly the same. It's Mistress had placed a feeling of what she was searching for, and whatever it was felt _massively_ greater than this. Still, why did the Grimm feel different than usual?

The Beowolf that appeared to be leader of the pack growled once more at the Geist, a warning sound more than anything truly aggressive. The Geist wasn't really sure how to respond to such behavior at first, since it was something Grimm never expressed, but then decided that since the Mistress wanted to know the origin of the energy these Grimm might provide an explanation of some kind. With that in mind the Geist made to possess a large boulder so as to destroy these odd Grimm. Unfortunately for the ghost the Beowolves were quite alert to anything that this outsider was planning. Just like when the duo took down the deer they latched onto the Geist and used their strength to yank it to the ground.

Once the Grimm was on the ground one of the Beowolves let go and sank it's teeth deep into the arm of the ghostly outsider. A flash of golden energy passed from it's mouth into the body of the Geist. A pulse sent them away from each other and left the ghost shivering on the ground. The pack watched as the Geist twitched with bouts of golden lightning and groaned with what could only be described as pain. This state lasted only 10-15 seconds at most before the phantom seemed to gain control over it's body. Sluggish as it was the Geist rose to a floating position above the ground, then turning to look at the pack it had just tried to attack.

 **"Ghahdahsdh cheoahsdhfdslh"** The Geist mumbled to the other Grimm present with the 'language' of his species.

 **"Rawwerrere rawwerreer"**

 **"Cawww cawww"**

The Geist floated to the 'bedding' area that the Boarbatusk had torn into the ground. Aside from the flattened grass where the Ursa had lay there was no other spots truly claimed and customized for resting. The ghost didn't need to rest, but looking at the area around itself brought a thought to it's mind. This pack was different and had just done something that made _it_ feel different. The Mistress had commanded it to find the disturbance of energy, and it found something related to what she had felt, then it was to return to the Grimmlands so she could be told. Now? Now that command was no longer in it's head like an overwhelming sensation that overruled all else. The Geist's mind was quiet now, other than it's thoughts on the situation.

Slowly hovering to the ground next to the Boarbatusk the single red eye of the Geist looked over the others, now joined by the Nevermore, **"Ghahadhash….cheahahdhaaadh"** , the sound was one of confusion and uncertainty. Grimm had always been focused on the instinctual goal of human annihilation. With the golden energy warping them it was….afraid…...of these new feelings.

 **"Squeee squeee oiink"** The hog nudged the ghost with the tip of it's tusk. **"Squee oink oiinnk squwe have been adjusting too. Each day the sun rises we are different in some way than before, ever since The Great One did what it did. We don't know what is happening, but it is…..enjoyable."**

 **"Gahadah dadhcaadh"**

One of the Beowolves nodded, folding it's legs underneath it's body and laying down in the grass. **"Enjoyment is new to us, but it brings warmth to our chest. That warmth is….desirable….and we want to keep feeling it. We remember what it was like before The Great One; empty, angry, hazy. We don't want that again, so stay with us Geist."** The other Beowolf sidled up next to it and cuddled into it's side, affectionately nipping on the muzzle of the one that spoke.

The Geist let it's body rest on the grass like the others were and, very slowly, nodded to the request the pack leader put forth.

 **Mistral Beach, southern border**

"Okay, we are live at Verizano Beach, it's sunny and about 95°, the waves are going off and begging to be ridden. Roja here is gonna go first then I, Mire, your Hostess with the Mostess will take a ride and YOU, the fans, will tell us who did better." Mire turned the camera on her scroll to her boyfriend, his surfboard in arm. "You ready to lose babe?"

The hedgehog faunus smiled at his human girlfriend, "Keep it up Mire, we'll see who's going home tonight with the crown. Gotta show the fans what a future pro looks like." He moved towards her and they kissed, the 'competition' really just something they did for their Whotube channel that fans enjoyed. "Alright, so what rules are we going with this time?"

"According to the poll we'll be using-" The light around them dimmed suddenly as if the clouds became overcast in an instant. Looking above them to see what was happening, a dark shadow growing larger by the second provided them with the unasked for shade. Whatever it was crashed to the sandy beach with enough force that Mire and Roja were knocked off their feet. Startled as they were it took a moment to stand up and actually look at whatever just struck the ground.

"Oh my god." Roja dropped his board and pulled Mire back from the giant 'Grimm' that stood looking out over the waters. It didn't move to attack them nor were there other Grimm with it, but the shear size of the creature was enough for them.

Without really thinking about it Mire aimed her scroll and started streaming the monster online, "W-we've…...I've never seen anything like this in my life! It's gotta be 110-120 meters tall! Just came out of the sky, no idea where it came from!" The monster turned it's head to stare them down, causing Mire to choke out a sob. "This is it guys. We're grateful you've followed us all this time and given all your support."

Roja grabbed Mire and pulled her into a loving embrace, lips smashing into hers and trying to convey all his feelings for her. The seconds passed and they had yet to die, so slowly separating the couple turned their gaze, and the camera, back to the monster. It appeared to not give a damn about them any longer and started walking into the ocean water. As tall as the thing was it had to walk quite a bit of distance before the water reached to the middle of it's torso.

Roja actually rubbed his eyes just to make sure what happened next wasn't a hallucination, "Is that Grimm…..bathing itself?" X was indeed scooping up handfuls of ocean water and dumping the liquid over it's head. He also ran his hands along his arms and chest in a sort of scrubbing motion in an attempt to dislodge any dirt or grime that was built up particularly rough.

Mire nodded in response, still keeping her scroll pointed right at the beast. Never in the history of humanity had such an event been witnessed. Grimm didn't care about hygiene, only about killing and destruction, so what the couple were seeing should've been impossible. Yet it was directly in front of them doing just that. Deciding that since they were still live and the situation was, again, unique, a little commentary wouldn't hurt at this moment. "Um, so again, for those just joining Mire and Roja here and Verizano Beach in south Mistral, we were planning on a surf showdown with you, the fans, as the voters. As you can see, however, this giant Grimm has just….well landed on the beach next to us. It hasn't attacked and obviously you saw that it looked at us, so it knows we're here, but instead the monster looks like it's taking a bath."

"I…..I know that's weird, and that we should probably get out of here, but this is…..out there. This Grimm doesn't look like anything I've ever seen, in appearance or size. We'll keep filming as much as we can, but be warned that if it does turn hostile….you'll know what happened."

X was unaware of anything the two humans were doing, and he honestly wasn't concerned about it any way. He just took the time to bathe and enjoy the feeling of the cold water. Said water was crystal clear, being close to the tropical region of the planet, allowing him to see numerous marine life swimming around his legs and feet curiously. It appeared they were less willing to run that the land animals back at his resting place, but as none were trying to bite or attack him he let them be. As it was right now, once he finished cleaning himself perhaps he would grab that snake-like monster waiting further out in the deeper waters. While enormous to the natives, to him it may as well have been a goldfish. Eh, he'd figure it out later.

 **Sorry about the wait on this one, but things at home have been chaotic. Leaving a job, starting another, leaving _that_ job because it was ass, going back to the old job, getting a performance engine put into my car, mom being in the hospital, and starting a new diet…..yeah. But, better late than never. Hope you all enjoyed.**


	6. The Truth Is Out There

**To those asking, no, the Geist is not Floyd. I actually have names picked out for the Grimm we've met, and the ones we haven't, that will have some significant meanings. Also, their personalities are going to be slow to appear, as they are growing from nothing. Not saying it's going to take 20 chapters, but I want them to feel real and organic.**

 **As for when they're talking: The translated parts from last chapter is their grunts and noises evolving into an understandable language between them. To humans, it sounds like another language. What language and names will they take? Perhaps we'll find out next chapter or two. IDK. :)**

Almost two weeks they had been at this quarry studying everything that had been extracted from within the mountain. The more they discovered, the more they were amazed and confused. Doctor Malau had been hard at work, getting the bare minimum of sleep in his pursuit of the answers to the questions brought up. The most important thing had at first been the video of the insectoid beings that appeared to be talking to each other in a command room of some kind. However another discovery just the day before sent the excavation teams into a frenzy.

A handful of files that were mostly of the text variety, which gave them an excellent basis for a codex in order to make a translation of this unknown language. While it wasn't perfect it was the best they had so far in order to move forward with finding answers. This was not the only progress made, with Doctor Malau and General Ironwood currently handling another file that, along with text and audio, was filled with images of the giant Grimm that had escaped in the first place. Despite the fact that a solid translation was not complete yet, the imagery alone was enough to cause severe tension in the General.

The screen in front of him showed what looked like a schematic-like image of the Grimm with various text boxes pointing to numerous spots on it's body. While the translation program hadn't been applied to this file yet, Ironwood immediately thought of similar files the Atlas military had for their numerous weapons and vehicles. An image of whatever it was, with info and diagrams showing the features that were specialized for each one. Even if he didn't understand what the letters meant it was obvious to him he was looking over a layout with technical data regarding the monster.

Next to this computer was another that had a video playing on it of a rather concerning nature. It was footage of a group of the insectoid beings overlooking the Grimm as it destroyed a city. Two of the insects were tapping away at what could pass for a scroll, although not see-through, with their chitinous 'hands'. Mandibles clicks between the two, and seemingly communicated to a third who appeared to be the leader. This alone would have been severe enough for the situation, but the thing that truly bothered Ironwood was the fact that he had not _once_ seen any kind of city or settlement as advanced as the one being destroyed. While the cities of Atlas were the pinnacle of modern technology, the images he was looking at made them seen tame in comparison. If the General were being honest he'd think he was watching an episode of a high budget sci-fi movie.

All too easily the buildings fell. The ships and ground vehicles that were most likely military failed to make any kind of dent in the Grimm's armor-like body. Even ships that clearly had a design made for transportation had been swatted out of the sky. The horrifying display of destruction was enough to make the General sweat. Add to that how the insects continued on with their clicks and tapping on the scrolls, and Ironwood couldn't help but think he was watching a weapon being field tested. The idea was insane; that intelligent beings would use a 120 meter tall monster the same way a Huntsman would a blade. Yet the proof was before him. Such an idea raised more questions than it gave answers. Plus, if the giant Grimm were somehow one that was controlled, what was it doing now? Where was it? Where were the insects in this video?

On the other side of the room they were in, a makeshift HQ for the operation set up in the quarry foreman's trailer, Doctor Malau was jotting down more letters on his scroll as his computer's translation program kept hard at work. With each new letter translated that he put into the system more files were becoming partially readable. The last week and a half had seen considerable progress with excavating a lot of electronics, and files upon files were being compiled into the Faunas' scroll. One particular file grabbed his attention over the others. It was the one that appeared to be the most recent if the timestamps were to be believed.

 **Req#es# #or #he wea#on: Ear#h kai## #roving an obs#acle. Wea#on needed #o elimina#e i#**

With many letters missing the Doctor couldn't be sure of what the message said. He had a guess, but the idea it presented was one that could shake the very core of everything the inhabitants of Remnant had come to believe about space. A message sent asking for the weapon to eliminate something that was causing trouble. It was all a puzzle with each piece completing the picture more and more. Malau felt that perhaps it was time to discuss what he truly felt to Ironwood about the situation.

Clicking a couple more files to be stored away for now the faunus turned to the other man in the room, taking a deep breath. "General, I have an idea that has been forming over the last day or so that, crazy as it may sound, is supported by a lot of the evidence we've been studying."

Ironwood paused the video playing on the computer and turned to the man that was quickly becoming quite the asset to the investigation. Perhaps when this situation was concluded he would seek to hire the doctor for future projects the Atlesian government undertook. "From my perspective more questions are known than answers Doctor. Any information you can provide would be appreciated. I'm willing to hear out any theories you have at the moment."

"Well," Malau waved his hand at the information collected on the computers around them, "Considering the estimated age of what's been recovered, the contents of these data chips and hardware, and the fact that the inside of the mountain is in no way natural…...I'm theorizing that the Grimm that escaped is in fact some kind of alien life-form and that it came here in a ship or containment chamber that the mountain grew around. I believe this alien creature would, in fact, still be within the mountain had the mining crew not breached the interior." There. He was laying it on the line and risking the chance the general would laugh at him before kicking him off the investigation.

No such laughter came, but James did frown at the idea being explained. "Truly Doctor? The kingdoms have never before found proof of life beyond our own, and space exploration is currently impossible. The idea that among the cosmos exist such a monster, and that more could be waiting, is horrifying in ways almost indescribable." The general's frown lessened just a bit, now more confused instead of troubled. "If such a theory were true, what is the creature doing on Remnant? What purpose does it serve? I also don't understand what kind of connection to the insects this monster would have. The idea you have brought up creates even _more_ questions, so many unknowns."

The doctor nodded his agreement to what the general was stating. Then motioned to the computer he'd been working on. "Despite still missing many letters corresponding to our alphabet, I have managed to translate what I believe is an order for the creature to be sent somewhere to kill something." The partially translated message was shown to Ironwood, who frowned again upon reading it. "I don't think it ever made it to whatever location the message was speaking of, since it was inside the mountain. Any plans that may have been in the works have most likely fallen through for whoever commanded the monster."

"The bugs…... _they_ held it's leash?" The idea was rather ludicrous. He compared the idea to how Ozpin told him of the woman behind the Grimm. A demon in a human form: Salem. Ozpin's description of the Queen was that of a woman with white skin and red eyes. At first glance one could _possibly_ think her normal, with perhaps a bizarre Semblance. He knew otherwise of course, but still. The thought that the man-sized insects were an intelligent race that had domain among the stars and also possessed a monster able to annihilate whole cities…...he hoped beyond hope that if these beings were still around that they would avoid Remnant.

Malau nodded to the idea, his own frown appearing. "I can't state with 100% to the accuracy that that is the case. However I am fairly certain of the fact that creature is not native to this planet. What it will do now, without the insects to give it orders, is anyone's guess. Perhaps it will do nothing, or maybe it will try leaving Remnant to go elsewhere. Maybe it will kill everything on this planet and leave it a barren rock. I just…..I don't know."

James was a man who normally hated such answers from his men. Not because he was some kind of perfectionist prick like Jacques Schnee, but because the unknown could lead to people losing their lives. Just as he was about to pose another question his scroll began to ring. Pulling the device out he was surprised to see Ozpin was calling him. "Ozpin, my friend, how are you?"

 _"James, do you have another scroll or are you around someone who does?"_

What kind of a question was that to greet someone with? "Yes….I am. Why?"

 _"Turn it to VNN_ now. _"_ The headmaster's voice was deadly serious. What could possibly be going on that needed his immediate attention on the news? He nodded for Malau to follow the instruction. The faunus opened his scroll to Vale News Network, which had a bright red banner upon their main page.

 **BREAKING NEWS!**

 **GIANT GRIMM SIGHTED ON MISTRALAN BEACH**

 **SECOND GRIMM ENGAGES BATTLE**

The news alert showed what looked like a live broadcast upon a sandy beach where the monster they'd just been discussing stood before another giant. This other, however, was clearly a Beowolf amped up in size to the point it matched the humanoid one. The Beowolf was growling and making aggressive movements with it's arms. The alien, however, wasn't moving one bit. In fact, it almost looked bored. The camera moved so that they could see a young faunus man saying something to the one holding the camera, then went back to the giants.

The two men watched with bated breath as the Beowolf began to move.

 **Grimmlands**

Salem gripped the edge of her throne so hard that hairline cracks started to appear. What was the reason for her anger? Her subordinate Dr. Watts had come to her with his scroll turned to a live video that was of a rather concerning nature. At first she thought it would be something that, at most, would be an inconvenience to her plans. Upon seeing the giant monster that looked like her children, but clearly was _not_ , her thoughts started churning. The video was coming from Mistral, which was where she had felt the disturbance that was cause for investigation the week before. Add in the fact that just an hour ago she felt the connection to the Geist she'd dispatched violently ended. The feeling was the same as before, when something wretched her children from her Sight. Perhaps….was this creature somehow responsible for what happened? Even if it wasn't stealing away her creations it was obviously an unknown piece in the chess game between herself and Ozpin. It wasn't her weapon, and unless Ozpin had lost his damn mind, it wasn't his either. Ergo: This thing had to die.

Watts, now joined by Hazel Rainart, actually took a step back in case their Queen lashed out at them. It didn't happen often, but when it did the results weren't pretty. The mustached man hesitantly decided to speak up, "My Queen what do you plan to do?"

Salem's eyes began to be overtaken by the red of her pupils, the furious color consuming the black sclera until it was as if two rubies had replaced her eyes. "I will be creating something to deal with this nuisance. We are too close to our current goals to be stopped by some beast, giant or not."

Focusing her power towards Mistral the Grimm Queen sought to create one of her children, but unlike regular ones that might as well have been cannon fodder against huntsman and huntresses, this would be a one-of-a-kind Grimm. One that could stand against the unknown monster.

 **Mistral**

Deep within the uncharted wilderness of the eastern swamps of Mistral was a black pit of bubbling liquid that continuously spawned Grimm to torment the local populations and keep their numbers in check. What humanity didn't know about these pits was that when Salem created them they were given 'instructions' on what kinds of Grimm to create. And that unless she choose otherwise, she was connected to them in a way that allowed her to create Grimm whenever she wanted. She rarely used this ability, content to allow the spawning pits to do the job she created them for. Now? Now she needed something new.

The normally docile bubbling atop the surface suddenly quickened to a rapid pace, akin to a pot of boiling water. A few minutes of this went by before the liquid _moved_ and began pooling into a pillar shape that started rising vertically. The higher the liquid went, the wider it became. Shapes came and went during this process, some familiar and some so otherworldly words couldn't describe how they looked. Half an hour passed before the transforming goo solidified into a shape that most people on Remnant would recognize.

It was a Beowolf. However, that was where the similarities pretty much ended. For one; it was 100 meters tall. Along with the armored claws that rested at the end of it's fingers being like razor blades instead of regular claws, four bone-like spikes were pointing out of it's forearms, two on each arm. The normal mask that most Beowolf donned was also different. The mask had a red pattern that spiraled out from the center that ended when it encountered the right ear of the Grimm. Near the top of the Grimm's head was a crown of spikes that were black in color, pointing to the sky like an evil knight's helmet. Upon it's chest was armor the likes of which might cause a soldier to think of kevlar plating. This torso armor looked thinner the lower it went, but still appeared sturdy enough to provide good protection.

Pure white eyes narrowed in anger before the altered Beowolf dropped to all fours and headed south towards the creature it's mother wanted dead. It was happy to oblige.

 **So, got this out sooner than I expected actually, and I'm rather happy with the small bits of development I was able to focus on.**

 **Next chapter is the first kaiju fight, and a certain group of 4 show up too. Also I want to give you all a heads up, that while I will obviously be focusing on this story, I have plans to possibly start work on a RWBYxPokemon idea I came up with. If something like that interests you, let me know and I'll put a small preview in an upcoming chapter.**


	7. I Will Break You

Ruby frantically rubbed the gooey stuff out of her eyes and once more tried to focus on what Doctor Oobleck was telling the class. The lecture had been going for nearly an hour now and, despite normally loving his class, a lack of sleep from a head-cold the night before made her want to just bury her head in a pillow. It didn't help that Combat Class had taken up two course slots today because Professor Goodwitch believed everyone was slacking off the last few days.

The team leader looked down to her notebook and continued to write down what she felt was the most important things from Oobleck's words. A rather harsh story about when Humans and Faunus first encountered each other and how fear and misunderstanding lead to war, slavery, and death. 'Our differences don't divide us, they bring us together' was written and underlined twice. Yeah, that sounded like something that could be on a test.

Once more her eyes started to water and the irritation returned worse than ever. Reluctantly Ruby laid her head down and shut her hurting eyes. Just a minute. That's all she needed. Just a minute to try soothing the dry orbs. Taking several slow breaths while gently rubbing her eyelids Ruby hoped that the next class, Brave Wilderness, would have some easy assignment she could finish relatively quick. Afterwards classes would be over and she could return to the dorm. They would be doing something outside as usual, the professor, a coyote faunus named Pet Erson, almost never had actual classwork that was theoretical or classroom-based. So, maybe she could just skip the class and have Weiss give her the homework. Yeah, that sounded nice.

When Ruby felt ok enough to open her eyes she was surprised to see that Doctor Oobleck was not at the front of the class anymore. In fact, the couple of other students in the row in front of her were also gone. What? Looking to her right she expected to see her partner, and secret BFF, Weiss frowning at her in disappointment for sleeping through the rest of class. Instead the young Rose was horrified to see an Alpha Beowolf sitting next to her, staring her down with it's fiery gaze..

Then it spoke in Weiss' voice, "Ruby."

Ruby jolted up, waking from her dream due to Weiss shaking her shoulder just enough to rouse her. The young team leader tried to calm herself, doing her best to slow her racing heart, all while Weiss had a rising brow at the Rose's behavior. "Are you ok?"

"I….I'm fine. Sorry, I just really don't feel good. How much did I miss?" Trying to rub the drowsiness out of her eyes once more, she reached for her pen and tried to focus again.

Weiss turned her head forward and jotted down a quick point the professor was making. "Just a few minutes. Don't worry Ruby, I know you're sick, so just do what you can and I'll go over everything with you later." The Schnee gently rubbed Ruby's shoulder, reminding the younger girl of the night Weiss promised to be the best teammate she could.

Her BFF being so nice, when she was normally more strict, made the sinus headache she had just a little more bearable. She laid her head down and listened to Doctor Oobleck start to talk about a possible test they might be having soon, when she was startled by a shout from someone in the row behind her.

"Holy shit!"

Everyone, Doctor Oobleck included, looked to a student that was staring wide-eyed at her scroll as if it was the most important thing in the world. Instead of writing down notes for the lecture that Oobleck had been in the middle of, said student was surfing the web on her scroll. The obvious conclusion to messing around in class would be a surprise quiz and multiple detentions, but Doctor Oobleck had a different response to the student's outburst.

"What did you just say?!" Running, aka teleporting to the eyes of everyone else, to stand in front of her. She continued to stare down at her scroll, wide-eyed and jaw-dropped, ignoring him for a moment. "Miss Jayek! Look at me when I'm talking to you."

Van Jayek tore her eyes away from her scroll, before silently turning it towards the professor. The green-haired man was about to ask why she was showing him her scroll, but he then saw the image upon the glass screen. Quick as lightning he pulled out his own, after handing back hers, and turned it to **VNN**. Everyone looked at the duo confused as to what they were looking at, until Van stood up briefly. "Go to _Vale News Network_. There's some kind of giant Grimm about to fight."

Half the class thought she was joking, the other half were concerned at the idea of such a thing. Nevertheless everyone else proceeded to pull out the scrolls and go to the news site. Team RWBY crowded around Weiss' scroll, their jaws slowly dropping upon sight of the giant Beowolf and the unknown one having a standoff. The dust heiress almost dropped the device on the desk in front of her in shock, the other three not much better seeing that such Grimm existed.

"Oh man….how….how are we supposed to take on something like that?! There's no way..." Yang gripped her golden locks tightly in one hand, while the other held onto Ruby's shoulder. Her big sister instincts were skyrocketing and this was just at seeing _images_ of these monsters.

Ruby herself felt her throat tighten and her heart speed up harshly. When they had fought against Grimm in the Emerald Forest she hadn't been afraid. Even when fighting against the Nevermore, the largest Grimm she'd seen in her life at that point, she'd been careful, but confident. This however? These two were _enormous_ in size. They could literally step on her like a bug and that'd be the end of her career as a huntress. Her breath caught as the Beowolf charged the other creature.

 **Mistralian Beach**

X just couldn't go anywhere without one of these things bother him it seemed. Here he was trying to clean himself of the accumulated filth gathered while stuck inside his prison and what greets him, one of the odd native creatures somehow matching him in size. When the bipedal wolf first appeared it made threatening gestures with it's arms and growled at him in a way that was supposed to be intimidating. They weren't and it wasn't. In response X growled back trying to convey one simple thing, 'Leave me or you won't like what happens'. His growls were not understood by the Grimm, for only other kaiju would have an idea of what he was speaking, and as the Beowolf came at him he knew it would not listen otherwise.

The Beowolf raised one of it's paws ready to strike as it closed the distance. It was about to claw the alien, but a quick snap from X stopped it in place. X had jabbed out with the back of his hand, landing a blow to the Grimm's face. The Grimm stumbled back in shock, X himself not having moved a step, before shaking his head to clear it. The Beowolf tried another slash, but X knocked it aside, following up with two more jabs to the face and a solid cross. The Beowolf stumbled back again, falling to one knee and rubbing it's face.

X still had yet to move from his original spot, staring down the Grimm without care. Maybe smacking the Grimm around a little would get his point across. That desire was killed once he saw the wolf stand back up. Having not learned it's lesson the Beowolf tried to lunge jaws first at X, hoping to get a good bite in and tear some flesh. X was having none of that. With agility beyond what something of his size should possess, X threw his leg out in a roundhouse kick, following immediately after with a spinning heel kick. The Beowolf was knocked on it's ass, a few teeth missing from it's mouth.

Roja and Mire were shocked beyond belief watching these Grimm confront each other. Not so much at the Beowolf, since it acted just like one that was regularly sized. No, it was the sight of the other Grimm fight with clear marital arts moves. The duo had some self-defense training they had taken, since neither had what it took to be a huntsman or huntress, and it was obvious the armored Grimm was using such moves. Little did they know such thoughts were going through the minds of others all over the planet. Seeing what most believed to be a mindless Grimm using some kind of martial arts frightened them more than had it just been swinging claws like an animal.

After a minute of trying to gather it's wits the Beowolf finally stood back up. X turned his body sideways, lowered his stance, curled the middle three fingers on each hand, then breathed in a growled one last time at the Grimm. The Beowolf didn't flee, it couldn't, for it's master gave it a single command, 'Kill this creature', therefore it had no choice but to fight. Trying something different this time it grabbed a handful of trees from the ground beneath it and held them in it's clawed fist. Almost like it was wearing a pair of brass knuckles. Charging forward it tried to jab the broken trees into X's face, but it was not to be.

X's left hand snapped out to catch the inside of the Grimm's arm, stopping it from moving forward any more. Before it could try and back away he jammed his right fist into the wolf's ribs, knocking the wind out of it. This was followed by five rapid punches to the Grimm's chest, landed in three seconds, ending with a kick to it's knee. Once more the Beowolf the down, black ichor dripping out of it's mouth and obvious pain marring it's features. Driven to one knee it looked up at X and growled angrily, wishing nothing more than to inflict damage to the kaiju. X stared at it in pity, or maybe it was apathy, before drawing back. Putting more power into it than before X flung his leg out in a roundhouse kick, his shin connecting with the side of the Beowolf's head. A horrible tearing sound tore through the air, actually making a little blood come out of Roja and Mire's ears, before the sight of a severed Beowolf head flying into the ocean filled scroll screens the world over.

The disintegrating body fell to the ground at X's feet, which he stared at in interest before lowering his leg and dropping his combat stance. He had yet to see any Grimm die, so the sight of it disappearing into nothing was strange, and he wanted to make sure it wouldn't somehow still attack him. This distraction allowed the Sea Feilong that had been watching the fight from the water to lunge at X, latching onto the back of his left thigh in an attempt to harm him. This did not go their way however, and within seconds X had grabbed both of them and held them in his hands like a human holding a snake. They both writhed and growled in his grip, trying to claw at his fingers in hope it would make the kaiju let go.

How easily he could kill them both right now. A twitch of his thumbs and their necks would snap, ending them just as quick as the giant he just killed. Instead, thinking back to the group waiting around at his 'home', X let a surge of keizer energy flow downs his arms and into the two serpents. Just like the others before, their bodies surged in near seizure-like movements for over a minute before they stopped twitching. Not caring to deal with it any longer X tossed them both back into the waters from which they emerged, bodies splashing the water hard enough it would have capsized a ship.

X huffed to himself before gathering the energy in his body and preparing to levitate back to his claimed lake. Yet, he stopped and turned his gaze to the tiny ape-like being standing on the sand. They resembled those that were around his prison as well as the ones he was supposed to destroy when his masters had called for him. Hmmm. He'd not seen any since he first awoke, so he leaned down to stare at them curiously. His movements caused them to stumble back, falling to the sands screaming in fear. What the hell was wrong with them? He tried getting them to quiet down with a low growl, but that only made it worse. With that in mind he stood back up and levitated away, leaving two confused people scared, but grateful, to pick themselves up and film him ascending into the sky.

 **Back in Beacon**

Everyone in the class was silent. So silent that one could hear a pin drop, despite that being cliched and overused in writing, but silent nonetheless. They had just witnessed two Grimm fight, if one getting it's ass beat could be called fighting, then the victor not bothering to kill the human and faunus filming it. Such an experience just seen was…...nearly indescribable. Grimm were mindless beasts that killed without cause. They did not know martial arts and they certainly did not spare humanity.

Truly what Yang said earlier was true. How could they fight something like _that_? A Grimm that literally kicked something's head off.

Doctor Oobleck himself finally gathered his wits as he received a message from the headmaster. He cleared his throat loudly, startling some of the students that still had their eyes glued to their scrolls. "Class is dismissed for now. I…..for now I'd advise returning to your dorms. Classes for the rest of the day are canceled until the staff meeting with the headmaster is concluded. Don't worry everyone, we're safe here." Instead of waiting for any response, or even seeing if the students followed his words, the caffeine-addict rushed out the door heading for the elevator that would take him to Ozpin's office.

Seeing that her Team leader was in a near daze Weiss closed her scroll and grabbed her books. "Let's do what the professor says and go back to the dorm. I'm sure that we'll be told more information when it becomes available, and sitting here is going to get us nowhere."

The rest of Team RWBY nodded and gathered their belongings. Little did they know that they themselves would soon become involved with this new force of nature that revealed itself to Remnant.

 **For those who were expecting a super-awesome fight on par with something out of DBZ, sorry, but this was always the plan for the first kaiju fight. Salem is arrogant and somewhat set in her ways, and despite seeing this kaiju she thinks that a basic type Grimm will do it. She's been around for so long she is used to things going her way. So she underestimated X, and no will see that such callous handling of the situation will get her nowhere.**

 **So, yeah, X beat the piss out of the Grimm and killed it without any trouble. Later though, it'll get tougher. As a hint, the next kaiju fight involves someone that like crystals, and X will be challenged. BTW, I hope everyone likes that I have X using Jeet Kune Do. I felt no other fighting style would suit him. A style for a dragon, made by a man called The Dragon.**

 **Also, I hope the Jurassic Park 3 reference got some laughs. I pictured it in my head and couldn't help but write it.**


	8. Rainbow In The Dark

**I want to apologize for the time it took to get this chapter out. The holidays have been very much hell for me this time around, so writing was put on hold until I could get some shit sorted out in my personal life and at my work. I'm much better now, and chapters should be coming out at a fairly better pace. Hope you enjoy this.**

The queen of the Grimm grit her teeth as another surge of energy flew through her body. She had expected her creation to kill the other creature, whatever it was, and had instead met failure for the first time in quite a long while. The silk sheets of her bed clung to her sweating body like a moth in a cocoon. Salem had used a lot of power to bring her giant to life so quickly and the result could not have been worse. While she didn't have control over that Grimm to the extent of what one would call mind-control, the woman's connection was much deeper than all the other Grimm that came into existence each day. With such a tie to said monster, when it died the feedback on her end of the connection exploded within her body with the force of a city destroying bomb. She had collapsed bonelessly into her chair, pair wracking through her, her Seers holding her while she convulsed over and over.

Watts and Hazel had attempted to take her to her chambers, only for Salem to violently shove them away. Stumbling like a drunk after a night in a liquor store, the Grimm queen returned to her room, where she had remained for the last two days. She hoped to be back on her feet by day's end so as to create a plan with her followers on how to kill that damn monster. Perhaps that project she had Watts working on involving Grimm capable of using Dust? It had been some time since the last update on said project was given to her.

The question most on her mind was where this monster had come from. It was not one of her creations, despite being similar in appearance. Was it some kind of mutated animal? Or perhaps an experiment the humans of the world created in some freak accident? Salem supposed it didn't really matter, since it would be dead when she had a chance to heal. Perhaps once it was eliminated she would assign Watts to dissect the thing's corpse and attempt to weaponize it's power. Cloning it into an obedient slave? Well, she had success at cloning before, so that avenue was acceptable.

For now she would rest, and plan, so that when the time came Salem would eliminate this pest, and get back to her war with Ozma. With a silent command the Seer closest to her bed lifted the glass of water she'd asked for, allowing the dark queen to sip the cool liquid. It barely helped in her attempt to relax, hell, part of her felt like downing an entire bottle of one of her aged wines. At least if she were intoxicated her body would have something else to focus on. Laying her head back to the pillow she drifted off into a fitful sleep, thoughts of fierce vengeance swirling her mind.

 _ **After X defeated giant Grimm**_

Team RWBY sat in their dorm in absolute silence. Ruby was laying on Weiss' bed with a cool rag resting upon her forehead, Weiss took a sip from a cup filled with lemon water, Yang continued to watch the footage of Monster X fighting and killing what was being called 'Gigawolf', and Blake read from her smutty novel without the usual gusto. They'd been sitting quietly for the last hour since their dismissal from class. Waiting for some kind of response or instruction to their scrolls was eating at the students, but the idea of running around the halls aimlessly wasn't appealing either. So here the team sat, a proverbial Goliath in the room about what they'd seen.

After about the eighth time of restarting the video of the giant Grimm, Yang finally broke the tense atmosphere. "I'm not an expert, but I've never seen a fighting style like this." Standing up she placed her scroll on top of the bookshelf under the window, then took a few steps away. Turning her body sideways like the monster, then brought her left arm up to her chest, while keeping her right even with her hip. Yang widened her feet, bent her knees, and just for aesthetics curled the middle three fingers of both hands.

Ruby, Weiss, and Blake watched her hold the stance for several moments, eyes narrowed as the brawler concentrated on the fight moves X made in the video. Then the blonde jabbed her right arm out twice, followed by a snapping kick to her invisible opponent's chest. Weiss, downing the last of her drink, frowned at Yang as she kept imitating X's moves. "Yang, what are you doing?"

She finished her shadowboxing with one last punch before leaving the copied stance. She placed her hands upon her hips and frowned back at Weiss. "We've seen Grimm that could use limited thinking when fighting against us. Beowolves that try to ambush you, Ursa that toss boulders at someone, and other stuff, but this," her hand motioned to the scroll video of X kicking 'Gigawolf's' head off, "this is _way_ beyond that."

Blake closed her book and sat it on the sheets, turning to face her partner while removing her school blazer. "That's pretty obvious Yang, but what's the point? Getting worked up over this new Grimm isn't going to help with anything."

Weiss nodded in agreement with Blake, sitting next to Ruby and crossing her legs. "I would imagine that the Councils will be getting together to come up with a strategy of some sort. Perhaps they'll send an Atlesian fleet to track it and destroy it. That would be the best option for this kind of situation."

"I know I shouldn't be getting worked up, it's just that…..I mean just _look_ at it. That Grimm is out there running around and we had _no idea_ it existed. At any moment that thing could attack a settlement or city and wipe it away. There wouldn't be a single thing we could do to stop it. It really puts a damper on the idea of being a Huntress. Like, what's the point?" Sighing heavily the blonde sat next to Blake, removing her own blazer and undoing the top three buttons of her shit.

It was her sister that responded. "Because we've always known the risks sis. I mean, sure, this Grimm is holy-humongous big, but even the regular sized ones could kill us if things went bad. I mean….that's how mom….." Ruby paused for a moment to take a breath, then smiled at Yang. "We've trained, we've learned, we made a choice to be the sword and shield for the whole world. If that giant decides to attack….then we'll do our duty and protect as many people as we can."

Yang visibly brightened just a bit, but had one last doubt to voice. "Even if that thing can just step on us like bugs?"

Grinning and nodding back, Ruby gave a thumbs up. " _Especially_ if it can step on us. People will be telling tales of the valiant effort given by Team RWBY for years. Then they'll make a movie out of us, and instead of teenagers playing us they'll have 30 year old actresses that barely look like us. What do you say guys?! If that Grimm comes we'll kick it's big butt!" She placed her hand out between them, waiting for the others to join in.

Her sister finally smiled and placed her hand atop Ruby's. "Hell yeah sis. I guess I'm just a little scared, but I won't give up." To her surprise Blake was quick to put her own hand on hers, giving a light squeeze as well.

"Being afraid is normal, welcome actually, and you aren't the only one partner. Despite being afraid of what might happen, we can handle it so long as we have each other." Her amber eyes glowed with pure warmth, confident and wholly trusting of her teammates. With that the three gazed at the final member of the team.

Weiss had her arms crossed, frowning at the display before her. Her eyebrow arching just the slightest when they nodded to the hand huddle. "I will not take part in such a childish action. I'm all for fighting, even against that monster, but I'm not doing a hand cheer." Ruby, Yang, and Blake kept staring at her, grins on their faces, and with a huff she finally relented. Placing her hand to the top of the pile, Weiss let a small grin show at last. "I do like the idea of people making a movie out of us. Hopefully a trilogy if we're good enough."

"Awesome! Team RWBY won't let anything stop us. Huzzah!"

"Huzzah!"

The team threw the hands into the air to complete the cheer, each feeling a little better about the monster situation. Little did they know just how involved they would become in the near future. After all, if the White Fang situation from the month before taught anyone anything, Team RWBY didn't know how to stay out of trouble.

 **Ozpin's office**

"It is my suggestion to cancel the Vytal Festival and focus our fleets on tracking this monster. Nothing short of complete annihilation via bombing in mass, every bit of Dust and weaponry we have." Ironwood's voice cut through one of the multiple scrolls sitting on Ozpin's desk, doing his best to get his piece in before the squabbling politicians could start talking over each other.

One of Vale's Council members scoffed at the general's words, the older man never having like the military official too well. "Canceling the Festival would just create more problems than it would solve. It is a symbol of our unity, something to raise hope in the populous. Taking that away will ensure more negativity, which will bring more Grimm to our walls. Perhaps you don't care about that _General_ , seeing that it wouldn't affect Atlas, but we have a duty to our citizens."

James grit his teeth and tightened his mechanical fist, picturing a Beowolf strangling the councilor. "I am well aware of the possible downsides to my idea, but if we split our focus between finding this thing and having to handle the Festival then both are at risk. If we can't track the Grimm then it could pop up wherever it pleases, seeing as how it can apparently fly. If we can't provide effective security during the Festival then criminals and other unsavory elements could cause a _lot_ of damage and harm."

Atlas' head councilor piped in, backing the general. "While I too agree that canceling the Festival and sending out our fleets is a good idea, might I suggest gathering the Maidens and having the four of them attack this Grimm? That is their purpose, is it not?"

Ozpin chose this moment to finally speak up. His eyes narrowed at the faded silhouette of the councilor, the man's idea bothering him as he thought of the girl under his school. "Even if Amber were not in the critical state she is, I do not believe the Maidens could stop this creature by themselves. Perhaps with the backing of the Atlas military and a legion of highly trained Huntsmen and Huntresses they could take it, but by themselves?" He let out his own scoff, but had to temper his anger, remembering that they were not warriors, only politicians. "For now Councilors I believe General Ironwood's idea of sending out Atlas' fleets is a sound strategy, as well as waiting until the creature has been killed to continue our plans for the Vytal Festival. It could be the best way to avoid unnecessary deaths and damage."

The Vale councilor slammed his hand on his desk, the sound muffled due to the scroll connection. "No! If you want to send out fleets of Airships then fine, but the Festival _will_ proceed as scheduled. If anyone wants to abstain from it, that is their choice, but Vale will stand tall and we will _not_ cower before this beast. If that is all, I will take my leave of this meeting." His scroll signal disconnected, leaving Ozpin and Ironwood with the councilors of Atlas, Mistral, and Vacuo. The two headmasters shook their heads at the pure ignorance shown by the Vale councilor, but the meeting could still be salvaged and plans made.

A feminine voice spoke from the Mistral scroll. "Since the Grimm first appeared in our kingdom we will dispatch Huntsmen teams to search for any signs of where the creature may be living, if it's still there that is. Should they find it's territory we'll report back first, wait for your airships to arrive and assist General."

Ironwood nodded in agreement, himself having been brainstorming such an idea. "Mistral does seem to be a place the Grimm favors so far. I will assign my personal fleet to start there, covering the shorelines first then moving in bit by bit."

"Thank you General, once our teams have been organized and selected I will send the information to you. Until then." Her scroll cut off, leaving Vacuo's representative to give his piece.

"It is unlikely that the creature would be in the deserts of our kingdom, there is practically no one inhabiting them excluding a few minor tribes. I doubt that would be enough to draw the creature, so we will coordinate with Mistral and dispatch Huntsmen teams of our own to join with theirs."

"Do you have an idea of how many you would be able to spare?" Ozpin appreciated their help, but knew they also had major problems internally, and as such they would still focus on their own issues first.

"I believe at least four for the moment. They are not our most elite Huntsmen, but they are skilled, and their records show they know how to get the job done. I'll send their information to you both." With that he disconnected, leaving just Ozpin and Ironwood in the room.

"I will continue trying to convince the Councilor to change his mind about the Vytal Festival. Until then, I shall have my staff ask our older students if any wish to volunteer in the search and destroy you'll be heading."

"Thank you Ozpin. It will take some time to get the entire fleet into Mistral, so it will be at least a few days before I leave. I'll happily take any that wish to lend an extra blade."

Ozpin took one last look at the image of the monster on his scroll. While on the outside he spoke of finding and killing the creature, his mind was of another thought process. Twice had the being encountered humans, first when it escaped the mountain and second upon the beach. Both times it ignored the people around it, for the most part, and it had fought the giant Beowolf. Grimm did not fight each other, even if two groups encroached upon each other's territory, they would still go after humans. Perhaps, if fate could grant them a boon for once, this situation would turn into a positive. He would have Bartholomew work on research as a side project, to see if he could find anything in history that could give them some information about this monster.

 **Mistral Forest**

The large shadow cast over their home caused the group of Grimm to look up, where they happily saw the giant one slowly descending to the ground. X's feet touched down gently, barely even disrupting the dirt, and he carefully looked around the area he rested at. There was a large pile of fruit stacked atop a rock that had clearly been beaten into a flat shape so that nothing would roll off into the dirt. The Geist added two more colorful food items to the stack, while the third it was carrying was brought up to it's mouth and bitten into.

The Ursa was working on stabbing tree logs into the ground in a squared shape. Two had already been completed, which were being topped with more logs by the two Nevermore. The shapes were extremely crude and primitive, but they were clearly supposed to be shelters. Similar to their activity the Boarbatusk was using it's tusks to tear up the ground, much like a farmer with a tiller, while following behind the Beowolves placed logs with sharpened tops in a line. Huh, they were building a perimeter wall. Each of the Grimm were doing something to make the area more habitable, odd considering what they had been doing when he first encountered them, but it appeared they were learning and adapting every day.

It seemed he was rewarded for not killing them when he'd first commandeered this plot of land. If they were evolving constantly due to his keizer energy then perhaps he needed to track down those two serpents he had tossed into the ocean. There was no telling where they would travel, so if he brought them to this lake he could keep an eye on their growth. What an odd thing to think. All his existence X was used as a tool by the Xilians, most of that time under their mental control. Now in the month he had been awake he was attempting to figure out what he was to do. Well, he still had time. For now he would watch over these little beings that followed him so, maybe infect some more with his power to see what kind of developments would happen.

It was an odd life he had come into so far on this primitive planet. Yet he could say that for the first time ever he could feel the emotion of enjoyment. That feeling was…...different, but in a good way. Laying down on the crushed trees he'd turned into a 'bed' his inner thoughts were interrupted by the Geist floating up to him.

" **You are the Giant One the others told me about. It is you that freed them, and they freed me. Are there…...are there more like us? Can you help more? Make them _feel_?**" It's words were not spoken like a true language. The words came out as a mix of hisses and keels like a bird. When it spoke to the others, who had their own noises made into words, they understood it. Perhaps this one, their Creator, could as well?

X stared at the Geist for a moment before he brought up his hand, palm upturned. The Geist hovered down just enough to be 'sitting' on the kaiju's palm. Red eyes met with fellow red, a silence in the air only broken by the occasional sound of the Grimm working below. As the sky turned into a mixture of oranges and purples X opened his mouth to finally respond. The panther-like growls would be unknown to anything not kaiju or keizer, so the words soothed the Geist into a feeling of happiness.

" **Perhaps I shall** "

 **Millions of miles away**

Scientists could never say space was a boring place. With all the cosmic anomalies and events that took place, some of which were once in a lifetime, the sight of what appeared to be a giant amalgam of white crystals passing through the void might normally be considered just another phenomenon. Yet for one unfortunate planet, one that laid directly in the crystal's path, this was one anomaly that made one wish for boring.

For deep within the crystalline structure a pair of menacing red eyes, set in a vaguely reptilian face, stared at the void around it. It needed food, minerals from within a celestial body, as it had been some time since it last consumed. As a result of hunger it had lost size, but once the crystal touched down upon the surface of a planet the process would begin again, and he would be whole once more.

 **End of Origins Arc**

 **Next, start of the Life Arc**


	9. Life Cannot Be Contained

**Life Arc, Episode I**

" **Life Cannot Be Contained"**

Doctor Malau checked his watched for the third time in a minute. The bullhead that was supposed to pick him up was running late. Sure it was only five minutes, but considering what he was about to do, he had a right to be worried. Weeks of research and study of the alien files and language had finally yielded the results he was looking for. He had given all the translated information to General Ironwood of course, but, away from prying eyes, the faunus had also created a device that he felt would lead him to the giant monster employed by the insectoid aliens. According to the documents the scientist deciphered the creature used an energy source called 'keizer energy' to power itself. Hours upon hours of decryptions, which to be honest he wasn't 100% sure if his work was correct, had led him to the decision that he needed to track down this monster. The governments of the world wanted to find it and destroy it, but they couldn't see the big picture.

An alien creature that could survive the vacuum of space, generated and used a power that allowed it flight, laser beams, and a transformation into a _monster_. The Xilians had studied their weapon well, keeping it docile using their mind control technology. Luckily the devices used to control 'Monster X', as it had been called, were damaged beyond repair and nothing Malau found yet described how the technology worked. All the information the scientist gleamed stirred a fire in his mind. The thought of all the advances they could potentially learn from the creature! The makeup of it's biology could benefit Remnant in the fields of medicine, weaponry, even humanity's very genetics. Yes! If samples of the creature could be cultivated, grown in a controlled environment and altered to human and faunus specifications….….humanity could become stronger, become greater, they could _evolve_ into the superior beings science-fiction always romanticized. With such superiority the Grimm could finally be eliminated. The planet would return to them and never again would they be threatened.

Such insane thoughts crossed his mind in the span of ten seconds, the scientist within overriding the morality that came into question with this path. If he were lucky enough to get physical samples of Monster X he would use them. Small tests at first; mice, rabbits, maybe even some kind of fish or crustacean for a little variety. Then once he had an idea of the effects, and of any possible negatives, the human testing could begin. Sacrifices would have to be made. Progress was never made by those not willing to give up a few things. Perhaps, if the man didn't attempt to have him arrested, Ironwood might even throw some of Atlas' weight into it. He did tell the doctor to, 'Do whatever it takes to solve this'. Sure, he'd been referring to the Hawcell Incident as it was being called, but really, this was the natural step forward in that duty. Of course.

Ah, finally. A black, bare-bones Bullhead came into view at last, wind picking up due to the powerful turbines. Once it lowered enough that he would be able to enter the side door opened, allowing him to board the vessel and sit next to a large, muscular man wearing jeans and a tank top.

The man was bobbing his head to whatever music was playing through his earbuds, drumming out a beat with his fingers on the shaft of the silver maul resting on his shoulder, the large head, nearly three feet in length, upon the floor. Despite the fact that it was near midnight he was wearing a pair of sunglasses, preventing Malau from seeing if the man was looking at him. As if all that wasn't enough, in his left hand was a 45lb dumbbell, that he was pumping at a steady pace. What was up with this guy?

Next to him was a young woman with literal rainbow-colored hair. The hair framed a face of smooth mocha skin and green eyes. Acid wash jeans and a zebra print shirt covered her, with a tattered denim jacket stylishly finishing the outfit. In her lap rested a sketchbook, the cover being a charcoal sketch of two baby skunks cuddling. Her weapon of choice was not in her hands, instead it was laying on the floor of the bullhead; a 7ft long curved sword was held down by one of her feet, the word _Murakumo_ etched into the handle. One might think her _somewhat_ normal, especially compared to the weightlifter, if not for the goat laying in the seat between her and the other door. She was talking to it and responding each time it made noise to her. It was as if the two were having a full-blown conversation. Another weirdo.

Across from them was another male and female duo. The woman's skin was lightly tanned, a possible resident of Vacuo, with short black hair cut like a soldiers, a red bandanna wrapped around her forehead with the word 'Serenity' written in black. A gray tank-top left her arms and upper chest exposed, showing several tattoos going from one hand all the way to the other. Most were in the shape of a hand, connecting with other hands through lotus flowers and curved lines, meeting in the middle where they turned into a spiral. Green camouflage pants tucked into durable hiking boots completed her look; the visage of a hardened veteran clear to all. An M60 machine-gun with razor edges sat in her lap, with another on her back, while at least a dozen ammo belts were being placed in an ammo box at her feet. She was certainly prepared for a bloodbath it would seem.

The man next to her looked all the part of a huntsman as much as Malau himself did. Unkempt curly black hair, short-sleeved black shirt with black pants, running shoes, and a pair of black-rimmed glasses. Were it not for the two chakram in his hands, one blue, one reddish-orange, Malau would mistake him for a regular civilian that had just hitched a ride. The unknown man grinned at him, telling him to come aboard with a wave of his hand. The faunus stepped into the bullhead and sat between the soldier and the regular, strapping himself in just as the machine took to the skies.

"So you the one that put this little excursion together?" Curly hair was still grinning at him, a real, happy grin at that. Malau nodded and pulled out his scroll, typing into it to pull some data.

"I have a way of tracking that giant Grimm that recently appeared. I have been tasked by the various Councils to find it's location and discern a way to destroy it if possible." In reality he had other concerns, these meatsacks were just here to keep Grimm away from him at all costs, up to and including dying for the cause. They didn't know this of course. They didn't need to.

Curly hair nodded to himself, before pointing to himself. "Gold Breeze; chaotician and huntsman when the occasion requires."

Soldier gave him a slight nod. "Listar Liger."

Rainbow hair smiled at him next. "Ieti Veona, but most people just call me Apple." The goat next to her bleated, earning a scratch behind the ears from Apple. "This little princess is my friend Moonlight. We've had each other's backs for a few years now, and I couldn't ask for a better partner when I'm out fighting Grimm."

What? Did she seriously expect him to believe that farm animal could stand up to a Grimm? It was obvious that she wasn't all there in the head, but so long as it didn't interfere with his goal it mattered little. The last one, the weightlifter, finally put down his dumbbell and removed his earbuds. His smirk instantly filled Malau with a smidgen of anger, but for the sake of his goals he kept his face blank.

"Fooges Dune: Top of my class, team leader, number one huntsman you'll ever see come out of Mistral." Then as if his over-the-top words weren't enough, he kissed his left bicep, before doing the same to his right. "When it comes to Grimm killing it's Sun's Out, Gun's Out when I'm around."

This one would be the first to die if Malau had his way. For now he would bear it though. Just long enough to get samples….…."Doctor Grana Malau, under employment currently by Atlas researching this monster and it's origins."

"What exactly are you expecting _us_ to do against something that size? When we were contacted the mission detail said all we had to do was act as protection for you while you did some research in the woods. Nothing in the dossier said anything about throwing our lives away over a suicide mission against that _thing_." Listar's tone cut deep as a blade, a deep frown aimed directly at Malau. The faunus tapped a few quick commands into his scroll before addressing her.

"The original mission detail said you would get paid 1000 lien for protecting me. The truth is, should you stick with me and do as I ask you will each be paid 1 million lien, 500,000 up front if you say yes." The amount actually got a gasp out of those around him, but something about the situation bothered Listar.

"How did you get access to that kind of money? Unless you're a Schnee, which you _aren't_ , no one is just rolling around with that much lien." She had a bad feeling about what he'd been saying so far, but….if, and it was a _big_ if, he really could pay them 1 million…..she would be set. Listar would be able to get her aging parents a place to live out the rest of their lives. Her son would never worry about going hungry again, and any school he wanted to learn at could be paid for, whether to become a huntsman or earn a degree in higher education. With such a payout Listar would never again need to put her life on the line.

Malau suddenly had a look in his eye that said such a question was not appreciated in the slightest. "Where you're money is coming from in _none_ of your concern. If you want the money, it will be yours, otherwise we'll drop you off at the nearest outpost and you'll get _nothing_." And just like that he was back to messing with his scroll, messaging his colleagues that his true mission was beginning.

His outburst silenced everyone else, Moonlight included, and nothing else was said during the flight. Just the silent sound of four bank accounts being filled with lien. Perhaps had the four mercs paid attention they would have noticed another stealth bullhead following some distance behind, called at the behest of Malau.

 **Tribe of Grimm**

The Alpha held up his hands and waved to his smaller companion, the other Beowolf in their expanding group. " **I want you to hit me. Just pull back and give me a swing as hard as you can. I need to test this out.** "

His partner tilted her head and began to ball up her paw. " **Are you sure? If this doesn't work it's going to hurt.** " He was about to respond, but voices to the side interrupted them.

" **Either way it's going to be entertaining. Besides, we've all got stuff we want to try.** " A large Deathstalker missing it's stinger spoke with a hint of excitement. He was a newer addition to the tribe, and so far his personality had developed to that of someone that liked to have fun. Having never experienced the emotion before the Awakening, as they called their changes, he took every opportunity to explore this new sensation.

" **Plus, should your ability work the way you believe, I will have someone to fight without worry of killing. A chance to get stronger is one I crave right now.** " The Nuckelavee that had been brought to them by the Giant One was certainly different from the first day they interacted with him. Three whole days the unusual Grimm kept himself isolated in a corner of the perimeter wall, not speaking to anyone or reacting in any way. On day four he finally trudged to the shy Geist amongst them and asked for some food. More days passed, each with the Nuckelavee sticking close to his Geist friend, before he started to talk with the others. At times he could still be standoffish, but for the most part he was beginning to form what humans could call a 'friendship' with the rest of the tribe. Especially with the Geist who made sure to put time in her day for him. She was so nice…

The female Beowolf clapped her paws together before pulling them apart to reveal a roughly shaped 4x4 she created. As with many of the others, she had begun to develop a power unique to only her as time went on since her Awakening. She could created any construct her mind was able to visualize out of wood. From the ground, from her body, from the air; it didn't matter. The more she practiced the better the results, but sometimes whatever she made was still as brittle as glass. Luckily this time the weapon was sturdy and would serve their purpose.

The Alpha braced himself and took a deep breath, readying his own power within. A loud _smack_ echoed around them as his companion struck his face with the wood bar. Nodding to himself he looked up at her and braced once more. " **It's working. A couple more times and I can unleash it.** " She complied with his request, smacking him across the face once, twice, thrice, and one last before her tool broke in half. Damn. She still needed to work on hardening the inside to prevent breakages.

Turning away from them Alpha smacked his paw onto the grass and let loose the energy built up. A fiery trail traversed along the ground before connecting with a wooden figure shaped like a Beowolf, set up at the Alpha's request beforehand for this exact purpose. The wooden dummy exploded into dozens of pieces, utterly destroyed by the energy the Beowolf focused towards it. " **Yes! I knew it. I can do whatever I want with the energy I absorb. But it took a lot of concentration to do that, so I need more time.** "

" **I'll happily give you some.** " Moving to stand next to the female Beowolf, the Nuckelavee grunted with effort and, slowly, blades that looked to be made of bone sprouted from all over his body. It was obvious he had very little experience with this power since it took so long for the blades to fully come out, and how it left him almost gasping for air. But with a grin he lifted his arms, bones sticking out like thorns on a rose bush. " **Let's have a go Alpha.** "

From the entrance of her home the Ursa Major that had been with them since the start watched everything. Those at the 'proving ground', as the Deathstalker called it, the Nevermore duo talking with the recently arrived Sea Feilong duo, brought by the Giant One, at the water's edge, a smaller than normal King Taijitu taking a nap next to the large fire pit where they gathered together at night to eat the mushrooms found in the area. In the home next to hers a Goliath sat enjoying some fruit with their Boarbatusk friend, and a tuskless Boarbatusk that was cuddled next to him.

" **You look like you have a lot on your mind. Here.** " The female Geist that was quite excellent at finding fruit in the vast woodland floated before her, hand outstretched and offering a few of the mushrooms that allowed them to take their spiritual journeys each day. The smaller Ursa male next to her scooted over and rested his head on her shoulder. It was a nice feeling. This feeling of…...comfort. It felt familiar somehow, but she couldn't figure out why.

Taking them in hand she gave one to her cuddle buddy and one for herself. The others she left for the rest of the tribe. " **Thank you dear. I've been having this recurring experience during our mindfalls, this same one where I'm…...in darkness. I can't move and I can hear someone talking to me before the darkness drowns me. Whatever she is saying…...I can't understand it yet. I need to figure this out.** " She consumed the mushroom in one bite, her male partner doing the same just after. Unlike the two of them he had yet to gain the ability to talk, but his emotions were blossoming like a flower in spring. She would watch over him and protect him. That was what she did…...wasn't it?

Within minutes the mushroom took effect, sending her into a world of swirling colors and sounds. That is to say; she could hear the colors and see the sounds. Before her very eyes the silhouette of a human man stood before her holding something in his arms.

 _What should we name her? I was thinking dlfhsd_

He shimmered before turning into a white figure with black liquid falling down her cheeks.

 _Such power shouldn't be wasted._ _Don't be my enemy. I'll show you the truth of the world my dear ldhflsjfoei_

Then the black liquid consumed her body.

 **Hey guys, so….I might lose my job. But I don't really care cause that place sucks your soul right out of you. Anyway, I went and planned out a really detailed 'storyboard' for the next chunk of the story. Characters, plot points, action scenes, kaiju, etc. So it should make releasing chapters smoother and chapter to chapter reading a bit smoother too. Hope this one here gets everyone excited for what's coming up soon.**

 **BTW, as a few people have mentioned in reviews and messages…..at times my dialogue kinda sucks hard. Not always, but, at times I just can't write good dialogue. Describing a scene or something someone is feeling, I'm great at it, but talking? Yeah…..so bear with me if sometimes characters talking sound like just walked off the set of a 60s Star Trek episode. Love you guys.**


	10. Life Breaks Free

**Life Arc, Episode 2**

" **Life Breaks Free"**

"My dear Tyrian, how willing are you to assist me with ending the threat of our new enemy?" Salem knew the answer to this, but she got a perverse joy out of watching him express his _devotion_ to his goddess.

The insane grin and near wagging of his stinger could've said it all. But Tyrian was a man of words that needed to share them with any who would listen, and some that wouldn't. "Of course my Goddess, I am willing to lay down my life if you asked. I would lovingly lay down others lives if anyone got in our way. What is thy bidding my Goddess?"

"Come with me Tyrian. I have something I need your help with." Leaving the dining room she lead him down corridor after corridor, a special destination in mind where she hoped to put his exceptional combat skill to use. Several minutes passed while they walked, the building suspense exciting Tyrian to an almost aroused state of mind. He had never once failed her when given a task, whether that be killing, stealing, espionage; it didn't matter. He would accomplish whatever she asked, nothing would stop him.

They finally stopped outside of a rather plain door, plain for her fortress at least, and stepped into a room Tyrian actually paused at the appearance of. The room contained an in-ground pool filled with a bubbling black liquid that the faunus knew created the Creatures of Grimm that served his goddess. What made him pause was that every pool of darkness he'd seen were always outside. Never had he seen the wondrous liquid inside the tower. He wondered what he could help his Goddess with that happened to involve one of the pools.

Turning to him Salem folded her hands into her sleeves. "If I asked you to destroy the monster that has appeared to us recently, would you do it?"

Tyrian grinned savagely and gave a firm nod. "Why of course my Queen! If I had a way to match it I would happily tear out it's heart and bring it to you! Then we could make a scarecrow out of the corpse! Keep everyone away from the Grimmlands forever, or _anywhere_ really, and-"

"That is enough Tyrian." The Grimm Queen turned now to gaze at the pool beside her. "If I had a way to put you on a level playing field, then could you, truly, slay the beast?"

Dropping to a knee the madman spread his arms in a bow. "I would love nothing more than to do so my Queen." He was ecstatic when she graced him with a smile, walking past him as if to leave the room. When he turned to follow he watched her lift her right hand, and that's when he felt them.

Two black tendrils had latched onto his arms, one his waist, and two for his legs. His kneejerk reaction had been to fight against them, but they dripped with the same essence as the pool behind him. Was…...was his Goddess going to make him into one of her creatures? One of the many weapons to destroy the world, only this time with one specific target in mind? How absolutely **_glorious_**.

Salem faced him now, as spiked tendrils pierced his flesh along his spine, connecting to his central nervous system. "You will become one of my Leviathans with a few…...upgrades, and you will do what you must to draw out that creature. I will be watching your progress, so do put on a good show Tyrian. I would be disappointed if you did anything less."

Just before the last spike entered the back of his head Tyrian managed one last response. "It will be a massacre my Queen." Then his body was pulled into the black pool, consciousness leaving it as his Queen demanded.

 **Argus**

Deep below the waters surface a monster stirred at his master's command. It was content to wait until needed, as had it's last instruction been, but it seemed that the master had use for it's power. Or at least it's body. The Leviathan's eyes glowed a blood red, different from the red-orange of old, pulsing with power as something _new_ entered it's mind. Thoughts, ideas, feelings, purpose…..a desire to please his Queen. YES. With a deep breath, and weren't gills just the oddest thing to breathe through?, Tyrian lifted his new hands to his new eyes. Oh, with such joy was he going to kill everything in sight. Looking above he could just make out the surface of the water. Once he figured out where he was then he could cause some mayhem and get that beast to come to him.

Seconds later his head broke the surface and he quickly scanned the horizon. THERE! Before him lay the harbor city of Argus; the perfect place to turn into a slaughterhouse. Even if the beast didn't arrive to fight him it would at least give him a chance to test out his body. He began heading towards the port city with as much of a grin as this body would allow.

Closer…..closer….closer…...he was nearly upon them! But…..first he should deal with the military base in the harbor. Take out the pawns and the rest would be sure to follow. He finally reached an area where his feet could touch the ocean floor and thus stood before the Atlas military and Mistral civilians in all his glory. Already he could hear the blaring alarms from the base, and it seemed they were quick to deploy the hard light barriers to protect the city as well. No matter. He'd destroy it all. However, just as he was about to take a step forward, excruciating pain flooded his body. This pain was accompanied by the voice of his Queen in his mind.

 _"As I said Tyrian, there are some upgrades you need first."_

Already the Atlas military was scrambling to get airships into the air and get someone into the Colossus to fight the Grimm. They had dealt with Leviathans before, so this wouldn't be any different than usual. Or so they thought. Tyrian began grabbing at his face, clawing and screeching, as the pain amplified tenfold. Digging into his own skin Tyrian roughly pulled his face apart, revealing a new one beneath. As his skin began to fall off all over his body, the faunus-turned-grimm started to grow in size. More and more of his body was changing as he became taller, stronger, more agile. Tyrian's face turned into a collection of _pain_ as a horn sprouted from his forehead, a spike emerged from his chin, and two mandible-like growths extended from his cheeks. His dolphin-esque head was gone, replaced by a green colored insectoid face, razor sharp teeth and pure white eyes gleaming in the daylight.

Armor plating covered his back, shoulders, legs, arms, and tail; the armor as green as Zoysia grass. Spikes traveled down his back, ending at his hips, while two blade-like protrusions extended from his shoulders; which matched the two at his hips. The end of his tail now had three upward-curved spikes, sharp and deadly like those on his face. His original hands and feet were now replaced with three claws on each appendage. The middle claw of each set was nearly twice as long as the others, ready to rend and tear flesh, or in this particular case, annihilate the Atlas military presence protecting the city, then destroying the city itself.

Now grown to his full height of 110 meters Tyrian was ready to _destroy_ everything in sight. His Queen's voice spoke once more in his mind. " _Now my beautiful Shiigan, KILL._ " Oh he would gladly do so. Electricity coursing through his new body Tyrian brought his claws down, destroying 6 airships in a near instant. _Yes._ He had always wished to serve his Goddess and kill her enemies should she ask. Now he could do so in spades. The kaijufied Tyrian slowly ran his claws across the domed shield protecting the city, the barrier straining just at his slight touch. The shattering sound when he pierced the hardlight protection was pure music to his ears. Unable to handle the force of his one attack the shield faded away like shattered glass. He let loose a sick laugh, coming out as a chuckling growl, and turned towards the military base and the oncoming prey.

 **Grimm Village**

X was startled awake by the surge of energy he could feel on the other side of the continent. It was a feeling he'd not felt in a long time; Kaiju. Only…..….it was different somehow. Darker and more…..unstable; kaiju weren't supposed to feel like this. Whatever he was sensing needed to be looked into immediately. X focused his graviton power and ascended into the sky, heading towards the strange feeling kaiju. He didn't know what to expect, but a part of him hoped it would not be some beast seeking to fight. He was coming to enjoy his peace with the little ones.

 **Beacon**

"Ok team, so, what kind of fun are we having this weekend?!" Ruby nearly slammed her lunch tray onto the table she was so excited. Today they had ice cream as the 'sweet' dish available, and although it didn't rank as good as chocolate chip cookies, she could never say no to a bowl of cold, sugary goodness.

Yang smiled at her sister's enthusiasm, despite the fact that the day was really dragging after spending the morning listening to Professor Port telling another _long_ story from his youth. "You mean other than sleeping in with the blanket smothering my head?" Her statement earned a small frown from Weiss, but that was nothing new to be honest.

The heiress wiped her mouth with a napkin before speaking, herself enjoying a dollop of strawberry ice cream. "More students are arriving for the Vytal Festival, the grapevine says they're from Vacuo and Atlas, so we could go greet them and welcome them to Vale."

Blake smirked and her eyes nearly glowed with amusement. "You meant spy on them like last time, right?" Weiss glared at her halfheartedly, before nodding in agreement.

"Yes we can spy on them and maybe get some early ideas for any fights we might have. But we really SHOULD try to be welcoming. As students of Beacon we're held to a level of prestige and decorum above all the other academies. We need to show that we're professional huntresses-in-training and set an example."

Ruby nudged her partner gently, grinning. "Weiss that sounds like a fancy way of saying, ' _Hey, we're super-duper awesome. Look at how cool we are!'._ Why don't we just say, 'Hi! Want to hang out?'".

Yang pulled out her scroll and started surfing the net, doing her best not to laugh. "I don't think Weiss is that easy-going sis. Too much fun cramps her style."

The heiress spluttered roughly, trying to avoid just straight up yelling at the blonde. "I know how to have fun Yang! All I said was that we should act professional and of our station." A tray slamming down next to them startled the four, Nora digging into her food with gusto.

"Who cares about all that stuff?! Think of all the food and the fights we're gonna get at the festival. It's gonna be SOOOOOO awesome! Turkey legs, giant corn dogs, gyros, overpriced sodas out of the vending machines we could get cheaper at the store." She would have kept going were it not for Ren putting his hand on her shoulder.

"Nora, as much as I agree with you about enjoying the festival, please don't talk with your mouth full. It's impolite and you could choke."

The orangette nodded in apology, focusing on her food so that she could talk after. Didn't stop her from smiling at her best friend before munching on a roll. Jaune and Pyrrha placed their food down as well, taking more sedated bites than the grenadier. Jaune looked to his sister team and asked what they'd been talking about. When Ruby happily explained that she was trying to come up with some kind of weekend fun plan, the boy perked up, a suggestion of his own he'd been thinking of for his team.

"Well, we could all go to this new arcade they just opened downtown. It's only been open for about a week, but I heard from a fourth-year that it has some _awesome_ games, great food, and the owner is a really nice guy." Everyone could see his enthusiasm over the idea, and though a weapons or comics store were always Ruby's #1 chill place, she really enjoyed video games too.

The young leader put down her spoon and focused on Jaune. "What's the place called?"

"Ah….I think he said it's called _Flynn's_. It's one of those old-school type arcades where all the games are just played for fun; they don't give out tickets and stuff like that. So everything in it is so people can spend time with their friends and just hang out. There's also pool tables, darts, a room for karaoke, and probably other things I'm forgetting." The blonde scratched his cheek, embarrassed he couldn't remember everything that upperclassman told him, but a reassuring pat from Pyrrha calmed him.

"I think that sounds quite fun Jaune." She looked to team RWBY, smiling at the friends she had made since coming to Beacon. "Do you want to join us for a trip to this arcade?"

Ruby's eyes were shining like diamonds by the time Jaune had finished telling them about the arcade, grin like a cat at the idea of playing some games and maybe even a quick round of darts to test her aim. "I'm up for that! We can have so much fun, right bestie?" The question was aimed at her partner, secret bestie, whom sighed at the younger girl's hyperness.

Holding a pose that looked like she was thinking and scowling at the same time, Weiss eventually nodded, smirking at JNPR. "I guess I'm not opposed to doing something that can be relaxing and allow us to practice our teamwork. Plus, if I have Ruby watching my back on the game cabinets, there's no way the two of us will lose. She's like the Ozpin of video games!" Such a warm response had Ruby practically floating in the air, mumbles of 'My bestie is the _best_ '.

Blake made a show of rolling her eyes and sighing, but she showed a real smile to the others after a few seconds of letting them stew. "I'm up for a trip to the arcade. I've..…..actually never been to one, so why not?"

Yang's response brought all conversation to a grinding halt. "Not _again_."

Thinking she was talking about the planned trip everyone looked at her in surprise, but instead of them, the blonde was staring down her scroll like her life depended on it. Everyone was curious as to what was causing her such distress and crowed around her to see what she was reading.

 **LIVE: Argus under siege! Giant monster attacks!**

 **"This is Jung Fleurie reporting live from the coastal city of Argus in Mistral, where a giant monster is attacking the local Atlas military forces! Witnesses say that at first a Leviathan-class grimm emerged from the ocean waters, the city itself protected by a quick deployment of a hardlight barrier, however the grimm soon began to….well…..change into something else."** The camera turned to show the green monster smashing airships out of the sky, naval ships being cleaved in two, and the military base itself covered in debris and fire. The teens were horrified to see the monster then grab one of the larger airships and _eat_ it. After the brief smoke from the explosion cleared the monster then started to _laugh_ , or at least make short growls that sounded like it was laughing.

 **"You can see that the barrier shield is no longer up, despite the danger still here. This monster overloaded and destroyed it just by piercing it with one of it's claws shortly before our broadcast started. Right now we have no official word from police, military, or government spokesmen about what the current plan is. I know that local huntsmen have been trying to evacuate the city away from the water, but with everyone in a panic it's slow-going and highly chaotic. Beyond that we're not sur-oh god."**

Now the camera view looked to the sky, where the teams saw the same martial arts using grimm that was already the talk of the world descending from the clouds with outstretched arms. It landed softly in the water quite a bit away from the green monster, it's skull-like head seeming to look back and forth over the area before settling on the other one.

 **Argus**

Monster X surveyed the damage that this other kaiju was causing, the destroyed remains of ships and an area away from the shore burning brightly despite the midday sun. The kaiju stared him down, but he couldn't take his eyes off the destruction that had been wrought. And for what? While the structures on the coast had not been attacked, the isolated place on the mini island was nearly obliterated, and what he presumed to be military vessels littered the water. All this destruction…...it made him think of times past.

Cities demolished, environments annihilated, populations made extinct, worlds left barren. All because of him. Yes, his former masters had been in control of his mind, and therefore his body, but it was still he and his power that was the cause of so much death. Time and time again, more and more loss. He was the weapon of mass destruction. Since his awakening X had begun to truly…...enjoy his existence. No voice telling him to destroy, no confinement in that prison, no orders. Just he and his little ones. Fate was a cruel entity. He just couldn't escape the company of death it seemed.

 **"So you finally arrived. I'm glad. My Goddess has sent me to kill you, and now that you're here I can make that happen."** The other kaiju was speaking to him, pulling him from his miserable thoughts, pacing back and forth before him like a caged animal.

X took a moment to think on what was just said to him, and immediately he could feel something like…...fire in his chest. **"You caused all this death just to get my attention?"**

 **"No. I caused all this death because my Queen asked me to do something dramatic. And because I _liked_ it. Getting you to show up this fast was just a bonus."** A white tongue, sparking with electricity, snaked out of his mouth to run over his razor sharp teeth.

X couldn't help but to stare at this kaiju. He _liked_ killing? Just…...like…..his…..slavers…...Xilians. X had never been able to do anything before, trapped within his own body by those bugs, but…...he could now. He was _tired_ of all the harm he had seen and caused. No more. **"What do they call you?"**

 **"My name is Tyrian, but my Queen says this body is called Shiigan. It doesn't really matter though, does it? I'm going to rip whatever you have for a heart out of your chest either way."**

Were he not in a half-dazed state of mind from the images of his past sins, Monster X might have laughed in mocking at this _child's_ claim. Instead he shook his head. **"No, you won't."** Then he charged towards this vile creature, intent on killing this monster and righting the wrongs he'd once done.

 **So, my idea with the Tyrian/Shiigan thing is like they did in The Matrix. Where the wires connected into peoples bodies and their minds were sent into the system. That's what has essentially happened here. I wonder what that means for Tyrian if he can't kill X? Anyway, hope you guys are ready for a nice brawl next chapter. And that you enjoyed the Tron reference I put it. PS, Flynn's WILL actually be a place they visit later.**

 **Till next time.**


	11. Life Finds a Way

**Life Arc, Episode 3**

" **Life Finds A Way"**

Malau ignored everything going on with his fellow passengers as he stared down at the news article on his scroll. No, it was not a breaking news article about Monster X fighting Shiigan, which was capturing the attention of the world. It was instead a report about how the Atlas Harp Seal was being reclassified as Critically Endangered, with an estimated 1,300 left in the wild. The information presented talked of how within 25 years the population of the animal had been reduced by 72% because people just couldn't go without fur coats. The hand not holding his scroll clenched so hard that were it not for his aura his palm would've been bleeding. The article even showed some footage of fishermen running over the arctic ice with clubs, happily swinging like they were playing some kind of game. All for a _coat…_

Bringing the clenched hand up and uncurling it a pink flame the size of an apple formed in his palm. The angered man whispered to the fire quietly, focusing his aura into his semblance, "Find these monsters. Show them the consequences of their evil." The flame shimmered before falling into and through the flood of the bullhead, flying in the sky towards the icy north of Atlas. His actions garnered a bit of attention from his company, but a harsh glare had them looking back at their own scrolls where the live broadcast of the kaiju fight was playing. Well, except for one idiotic meathead.

"What exactly was that Doc? Haven't seen a semblance like that before and I've been at this for a while." Fooges asked while pumping one of his dumbbells again. The man was smiling, but Malau was in no mood to explain how he'd just decided someone's fate.

"Ask me again sometime." Deleting the window showing the news he instead brought up the custom program he'd created for locating the 'keizer energy' of the monster. Obviously the creature itself was in the city of Argus, fighting another giant monster, but he still had the coordinates of where it was apparently staying before that. He needed to get there and survey the area. Perhaps the local flora and fauna itself was changed by the creature's presence; a viable theory since the monster could morph when utilizing the mysterious energy source. From their current location there was a strong 'signature' that was still another 4 miles away. If he had to guess, that was where the creature was living.

A quick text to the pilot asked for their group to be put down where they were. The forest wasn't near as thick as it was in other places. They wouldn't be able to fully land, but a small jump wouldn't harm them. Putting the device away he moved his sight to the four hired huntsmen, "We'll still need to head southeast for about four to four-and-a-half miles and we'll be at our target destination. Right now with the Grimm occupied somewhere else it'll give us time to collect samples of anything possibly effected by it, and take a detailed report of the area also."

Breeze cocked an eyebrow at the instructions being given, unsure what exactly was being asked of them. "Uh, what exactly are you expecting us to find? You're talking as if we're going to find some kind of mutated trees or a raccoon that can shoot fire out of it's ass."

"Nothing so fantastical, I promise. In the years that I've been a huntsmen and after going to university I have had many discussions with others in the field of biology about what affect Grimm may have on the environment." Malau removed his tie and pulled a pair of hiking boots from his pack, his loafers not suited for the journey ahead. "Mountain Glenn is a matter of debate among both schools. Huntsmen believe all the negative emotions from those that died have permanently tainted the location, thus why even to this day grimm swarm every inch of it. Some of my colleagues that are biology professors think that environmental conditions have been altered by the grimm being there."

Listar frowned while trying to think how someone could think grimm could do such a thing. Despite not having much information about the monsters, outside of killing them and their behaviors, the idea Malau was saying PhD professors were throwing around was concerning to a huntress like her. "What 'changes' are you talking about?"

The faunus finished tying his laces and pulled out his own weapon; a black machete with a serrated back. "Well, while they have no concrete evidence, everything is theoretical at this stage, the idea comes from how some animals will alter their habitat to provide for themselves and survive. A beaver, for example; they build dams as their homes, which obviously will have an effect on whatever water source they pick. Along with downing trees, which can provide more sunlight to struggling grass and plants, the animal life in the water may not be able to return to their breeding grounds if the dam completely cuts off their path."

The doctor nodded to himself, thinking of his own plans for this trip. "The beaver is not evil, but by simply existing it has a domino effect on everything around it. Therefore: perhaps the grimm are doing something to the ground or the air, or some other change we just don't know or understand about?"

"Uh huh." Listar's unconvinced sarcasm told exactly what she thought of that idea. She'd spent many years in the field fighting and killing Creatures of Grimm. Not once had she come across anything that even remotely hinted that the monsters behaved or thought in such a manner. It sounded like New Age bullshit. Whatever.

The speaker on the ceiling came to like then, the pilot's voice getting their attention. "I've brought us down as much as I can, but the ground is uneven, so you'll have to jump the rest of the way."

Malau stood and picked up his pack. Opening the door and jumping down to the forest below he pulled his scroll out to glance at his 'keizer tracker'. _Still to the southeast._ _But...something else is there too. Smaller, less powerful, but concentrated. Odd._ The team of four dropped behind him with weapons at the ready. "Let's go. The faster we get to the destination the sooner we can finish. I have a job to do." The last of his words were whispered to himself. Listar stood next to him with her M60 aimed at the trees before them, a pair of high-tech goggles covering her eyes that gave her a readout of the surrounding area. Her HUD showed a marker sent by Malau indicating their objective, letting her take point of the small squad so that any grimm they encountered could be easily cut down.

The huntress was nearly knocked on her ass by the excited goat running in front of her. "Sorry! Moonlight, you have to pay attention. I know you want to lead, but at least wait to ask." Apple rubbed the goat's head, scratching behind her ears which earned a happy bleat. Shifting Murakumo across her shoulders the rainbow-haired girl smiled apologetically at Listar. "She's excited about finally being off the bullhead. Moonlight's no tracking dog, but if there's anything in the area, grimm or otherwise, she can let us know. Is that cool?"

An annoyed growl was her answer. "Whatever. Just be more careful. I nearly shot your damn pet." The soldier hefted her machine gun once more, focusing on the treeline once more.

Apple frowned at the other woman's rudeness, giving her the middle finger behind her back. "I'd like to see you try."

 **Argus**

X managed to block a slash to his stomach, but a quick jab punctured his shoulder, forcing him to put some distance between he and his opponent. Tyrian was not allowing that however. Bounding after the other kaiju he brought both arms down to slice it's chest, but instead of a block this time X ducked to the left to get away from the sharp claws. X tried for a kick to Tyrian's chest, but Tyrian wrapped his arms around the limb and bit into the black flesh. While the bite itself wasn't really painful, it was what came after that surprised X. Electricity surged through his body which caused his other leg to go out. Laying in the water, all of his muscles twitching in pain, X tried to kick Tyrian away, to get him to let go of his leg. His foot connected with the other kaiju's neck four times before his leg was released. X swung his legs and pivoted on his hands, getting back to his feet and punching Tyrian in the chest over and over.

Tyrian took the hits without much trouble, since his chest was covered in hard armor. He brought his hands up in an attempt to impale X through the stomach, but the keizer grabbed his wrists, stopping the attack and returning it with kicks to Tyrian's right thigh. Although thick with muscle and partially protected by armor the leg gave after almost a minute of taking abuse. Driven to one knee Tyrian tried to stab X with the sharp horns on his head. He didn't get the stab he was looking for, but a lengthy slice was made in the flesh between bone plating. With his right leg also giving out for a moment, the two were at the same level again. Letting go of Tyrian's wrists X slammed the edge of his hand into the soft flesh of the electrical kaiju's neck.

Tyrian responded to this by clamping his jaws down on X's hand. Stunned for a second from another dose of electricity, the keizer couldn't protect himself when Tyrian tackled him to the ground. Water sloshing around them, surges of electricity flowing off X's body, Tyrian finally got a chance for a solid attack. Pulling back his right arm he gathered electricity around his claws, a razor sharp smirk forming around the hand he was biting, then the claws were driven into X's shoulder just under the half-head that rested there.

 **Beacon**

"Come on, get up!" Ruby's outburst startled the seven students surrounding her.

Weiss dragged a hand down her face while the other sat over her heart, trying to calm herself. "There's no need to yell Ruby. Besides, why are you cheering for that grimm?"

Turning from her sister's scroll Ruby looked as if Weiss asked her why she liked cookies. "The other one was destroying everything in sight, and this one came to stop it. I think it's obvious why I should cheer for it."

Weiss was not convinced however, her frown, her usual expression, working as a metaphor to try and scold her team leader for that statement. "Ruby, this is a GRIMM we're talking about. Not some movie star or musician or other kind of entertainer. It's a monster that will need to be put down."

Ruby starred at her partner for a moment before looking at the others. While not outright agreeing with what Weiss said verbally, Ruby could see from their expressions that they were of a similar mindset. So, knowing she had to stick to her guns, and with the inside of her cheek being chewed on, Ruby posed the important question. "Well...what if it isn't a grimm?"

Weiss couldn't believe what she just heard. "What kind of a question is that? It has a dark-colored body and bone armor all over it. This thing's eyes are red too. Textbook case of the characteristics of a grimm. What else could it possibly be Ruby?"

In the past Ruby might have cowed to Weiss' points, and the undertone of frustration in the heiress' voice, but time and experience taught her how to debate a subject even if the situation was tense. "Grimm don't fight other grimm though, and I've never seen a grimm that fought using martial arts. If it was a grimm why did it stop the other one from destroying the city? What if it's…..just a big animal or something?"

Blake's eyes went from Ruby to Yang's scroll, the news feed showing X manage to remove his hand from Tyrian's jaws. The keizer looked to be trying to lock his legs around the neck of his attacker in some kind of armbar. "You're right that grimm don't fight each other, but animals aren't intelligent enough to use advanced fighting techniques. Teeth, claws, natural poisons or venom, but nothing like what humans can do with time and training. I don't think this is some kind of big animal, but Ruby may be right that it isn't a grimm."

X wasn't able to lock his legs around Tyrian's neck so he settled for placing a foot against Tyrian's chest and shoving him away. While the angle wasn't the best, the eight teens could see _red blood_ seeping from where the monster had been stabbed. Gasps were heard all over the cafeteria from fellow students, many whom looked much like RWBY and JNPR. This giant creature was bleeding red blood, instead of the wound fizzing with black smoke as was normal with grimm.

Out of their little group Jaune was the one to break the ice on the matter. "Well I guess that means it isn't a giant Grimm. So, just a big monster?"

 **Argus**

X brought his fingers to his wound, prodding it to see how deep it was. It nearly went to the joint within, but despite the pain he was feeling he could finish this fight. Moving in X deflected a slash before planting two punches into Tyrian's gut and three into his chest. The other kaiju ducked the spinning heel kick that followed, and lashed out for the first time with his tail. The three spikes at the end of his tail sliced across X's stomach, drawing more blood from the unprotected flesh.

That pissed X off to a new level.

Once Tyrian was facing X again he ate a left cross to the face. The blow staggered him, but he had zero time to counter as a cross from the other fist connected. One, two, three, four, five, six. Driven closer to the Argus docks Tyrian was knocked on his ass by one last punch that broke the spike sticking out of his left cheek. X grabbed hold of his shoulders and roughly pulled him back to his feet. Dragging him away from the populous X pulled back for another cross, to which Tyrian desperately thrust his claws to retaliate.

X screamed out in pain as his right bicep was pierced by Tyrian's claw, the ends of which were sticking out the other side of his limb. Little time was had to process this when his opponent stabbed that same side's armpit. Not giving the keizer time to recover in some way Tyrian clamped his teeth once more onto X's hand. Impaled in two places and electricity surging through him again X fell to one knee. He couldn't move his right arm in any way and with the energy coursing into his body he could barely keep his eyes straight.

With all the razor sharp armored hide at his opponent's disposal, every close attack had the chance to turn ugly. This was the first time in a _very_ long time that he'd been in a fight where his enemy actually put up a good resistance. Eyes beginning to glow with power, Monster X was _done_ with this fool.

 **Beacon**

Uncaring of how many people might stare, or how it might affect her social status among her peers, Ruby nearly caused Yang to go deaf with her scream. "No! Don't let that _poophead_ win! You've gotta fight back big guy!"

Weiss grabbed the younger girl's arm and tried to drag her down so that everyone looking couldn't see her. "Ruby what are you doing?! Everyone's staring at us and you're cheering on this monster!"

Not trying to be mean, but not willing to be hushed, Ruby pulled her arm away from the heiress. Her defiant frown could've said it all, but the young rose was always one to say how she felt. "I'm cheering for the one that I think is a good guy. I don't care if people don't like that. I believe it's here to help!"

Weiss didn't get a chance to argue with her partner, as a fourth-year student across the room yelled out to them, anger quite clear on his face. "You're rooting for this monster to get up and win? Aren't you forgetting that we're learning to _kill_ monsters like this?"

Ruby wasn't going to be cowed by the older boy, however, and pointed her finger to the scroll in Yang's hand. _Huh, what's going on with it's eyes?_ "That one is obviously trying to beat the other one. You know, the one that was _destroying everything_. The military wasn't able to do anything so if he's able to beat it why shouldn't I be happy?"

The senior was not happy with the phrasing the freshman used to describe X. "He?! That _thing_ is. a. _monster!_ "

Yang was about to get up and put her two lien into it, aka her fists in the guy's face, but Ruby boldly shook her head. " **Monster** is a relative term you meanie. To a rabbit a wolf is a _monster_."

Her words actually caused many within the cafeteria to look thoughtful. The comparison actually made sense to the students, who pictured how a rabbit being hunted by a wolf would think the canidae was the devil, when in reality it was just a predator trying to feed itself. Everyone looked back down to their scrolls just in time to see an explosion of yellow light appear between the two giants. X's hand was finally let go which allowed him to grab hold of Tyrian's arm that was stabbing his bicep. Gritting his teeth he pulled the claws out and held that arm away. His eyes glowed yellow once more before unleashing his graviton beams into the inner elbow, going right through and severing the limb.

In shock and massive pain Tyrian pulled his other claws out of X and backed away. If it was possible for a kaiju to look like he'd just shit himself Tyrian was the poster boy for such an expression. Another round of graviton beams to his chest sent Tyrian to the water, unable to get his bearings after losing his arm. X didn't care that he was down and hit him one more time with his energy attack.

Seeing the fight take such a sudden turn cheers and whoops were heard throughout the room. Ruby herself was glomping her sis so hard you could almost hear bones creak. "That was so _cool_! He's got freaking _laser beam eyes_! Ahh!"

Jaune was caught up in all the excitement with her, a fist pump nearly knocking Pyrrha in the head. "He took that thing's arm off with them! Pulled those claws out and just said, 'No more'. He's got this in the bag!"

 **Argus**

Getting back to his feet Tyrian was confused to why X stood before him with fingertips nearly touching his chest. Despite almost no room to put any power behind the punch, when X drove his left fist into his chest Tyrian screamed from the pain. The one-inch-punch, so to speak, cracked his chest armor instantly and sent him into an unoccupied space of the bay. Falling onto his back, crushing trees beneath his massive form, Tyrian could barely breath and didn't have the strength to rise back up. The blurry outline of X was turned sideways, his injured arm behind him so it couldn't be hit.

X felt that now was the time to give this demon one last bit of wisdom. " **I told you that you wouldn't rip out my heart. Perhaps your 'Queen' will think twice of messing with me. Send her my regards.** " Side-jumping towards Tyrian, bringing his left leg up and in, coiling like a snake about to strike, X crossed the distance between them with lethal intent.

Within his mind Tyrian was screaming for Salem. **_Please my Queen, release me from this body! This beast is going to kill me!_** Silence answered his pleas. He couldn't hear his Goddess within his mind any longer. Just as X's foot made contact with his skull one last thought was processed, **_My QUEEN!_** Then his life was ended by his head being crushed. X stood there for another moment, leg extended, before pulling back and just staring at the dead body of his foe. Unlike the last kaiju he'd killed this one didn't begin to disintegrate into nothing. He didn't really care if it faded away or if the thing's corpse lay there and decomposed. It was finally over.

The pain in his right arm came back with a vengeance as his adrenaline died down. He would be healed up within a day as long as he didn't aggravate the wounds, so he wasn't really worried now that his enemy was dead. Looking around at the destruction he was happy to see that the city was not badly damaged, truly the only thing wrong with the settlement itself was a couple of buildings were dirtied with his blood that spilled after his impalement. Of course the base where they kept their vehicles and armaments was still burning away, the wreckage of flying and seafaring craft scattered across the waters. Along with…

Walking over to a bright orange object that was keeping a couple of the tiny apes out of the water he eyed them with amusement when they pulled out weapons and aimed his way. Really? After seeing him kill the other kaiju did they really think anything they tried would hurt him? Such simple beings. He picked up their rescue craft with his good hand before they had a chance to jump into the water, which cause them to scream out. Why did these little things like to make so much noise? They were brought to the shore of the city and gently placed upon the ground amongst a crowd of gobsmacked onlookers. X went back out to the water and grabbed another of the inflatable lifeboats, returning to the docks with it and putting it down next to the first.

The crowd of humans and faunus stared speechless as the giant creature continued to rescue military and civilian personal that were floating in the lifeboats around the military base. Nobody knew where it started or by whom, but someone screamed out in happiness then whistled loudly. Then a second. A third. Ten. Thirty. Before long everyone was cheering, clapping, whistling, or just screaming incoherently. This monster had come to save them from their attacker and was not trying to destroy them after the battle.

"Jung Fleurie reporting live from the city of Argus where the battle between the two giant monsters has come to an end! It was a long, tough fight for our savior, who didn't come out unscathed, but in the end he stopped the Leviathan and is now rescuing survivors from the Atlas base. I...I don't know what this means for the future of Remnant, but ladies and gentlemen our own eyes have seen that this giant grimm...or whatever it is means us no harm. Many families will sleep tonight with the knowledge that this incredible monster saved them. We'll have more on the story as details become available and we'll try to have an update on how the city and it's citizens are doing later on. This is Jung Fleurie with _Mistral Broadcasting C_ _ompany_ signing off. Back to you in the studio Van."

 **With Grimm Tribe**

The Alpha was panicking to the point one might think he was going to have a heart attack. Nearly an hour ago everyone in their pack had begun to feel ill to the point that they thought perhaps they would die. Headaches, fever, sweats, physical pain, and the occasional spark of the yellow energy The Great One bestowed upon them. Something was very, very wrong. He was their leader, their Alpha, and he could do nothing to help them except check on each one.

He too was suffering from this illness like his brethren, but a liberal use of his ability kept strength within his limbs, after having absorbed power from the beam of energy he'd asked the male Nevermore to hit him with. He stroked his mate's head gently...lovingly and pushed a piece of fruit to her mouth. He didn't expect her to be able to eat it, but he wanted it there for her in case hunger struck. Not wanting to, but knowing it was his duty, the Alpha stood and made his way around their home once more to check on everyone. Two Ursa, two Boarbatusk, two Nevermore, Deathstalker, Goliath, King Taiju, even the two Sea Feilong. Then he came across a sight that just killed him inside.

The soft-spoken Geist that made it her goal to give each of them a piece of fruit for midday meals, and herself stockpiled the food, lay motionless on her back next to the tiny shack she called home. Teeth grit he rushed to her side, hoping that she was alive. She was, thank The Great One, but only just. The Alpha Beowolf sat her up and wiped away a lone tear trailing down what counted as her face.

"A-Alpha what's happening to us? Are we dying? Have we angered some spirit like The Great One and are being punished?" Her voice was rough, like she had trouble just getting the words out. It was concerning as she didn't have a mouth or a true throat that would be sore in the first place. He grabbed onto her 'hand' and squeezed, trying to shift some of his stored energy into her. Unfortunately he failed, as he just didn't have the skill for such a thing yet. "I don't understand. Why is th-"

She was cut off as her body began to convulse, arcs of keizer energy shooting off her body into the air like sunspots on a star. All around him the rest of the tribe fell to the same convulsions, and though he tried to fight it, the Alpha did too hit the dirt seizing for nearly a minute. Then it all stopped. The grimm ceased to move, ceased to breathe, just ceased everything. Were one to come across their self-built home they might think of the area as a grave. And yet…

Alpha's body began to twitch. It was not the movement of something trying to rise after passing out. It was not the movement of something in pain. No. The Alpha's body twitch as if...as if something were trying to burst from within. A vile tearing sound came from his body, and every other body of the awakened grimm. Like a butterfly emerging from a chrysalis a humanoid form crawled out of the corpse of the Alpha Beowolf. Dark skin that matched that of the Grimm, a domino mask of bone covering his eyes, long brown hair tickling his chin, humanoid arms and legs, a strange appendage dangling between his legs. Stumbling out of his disintegrating wolf body like a drunk the Alpha hit the ground in shock, crying out in fear as his blue eyes looked to his fellow grimm.

All around him were others that matched his new form, some with the appendage between their legs, while others had round flesh on their chest. Alpha was hyperventilating by this point. His wide eyes looked to his new hand, said body part shaking and feeling quite sore. Hell his whole body was sore. Trying to stand on these new legs was a _chore_. None of the grimm could make it to there feet at first, but being their leader Alpha forced his body to work. He had to. Finally he stood, shaking and with his back bent from his body's exertion, but he stood nonetheless. Stumbling to his mate he wrapped his arms around her. Both were covered in goo that clung to them as they'd left their 'cocoons', but neither cared.

Like him she was humanoid now. Strawberry blonde hair that touched her shoulders, bone that served as eyebrows and a thin piece that crossed her nose, red eyes, a soft face, a feminine body with childbearing hips, muscular legs, the mounds of flesh upon her chest. Her mouth moved, throat making strange sounds as she tried to figure out this new voice. His hands came to rest on her face, unable to break eye contact with the one that cuddled with him at night.

Finally the former Beowolf managed to work out how her voice worked. "Al. Alp..Alpha. Alpha. Alpha!"

He too tried to get his throat to work right, eager to respond to his mate. "P-part...partner. Partner!"

The former grimm tribe came together and sat with each other. It didn't matter that they were all naked. They didn't know about their bodies, so why would that matter? A slight rain began as they gathered, quickly turning into a downpour that washed the grime and filth from their bodies. The former monsters felt good. Obviously they were sore from the transformation, but the sickness they had been feeling before was now gone. Unbeknownst to them the keizer energy Monster X had filled them with awakened them as true, sentient beings. The God of Light had Ozpin, the Relics, the Maidens, and the silver eyes. While the God of Darkness had just Salem, the pools of darkness, and the Grimm. Uncorrupted the Grimm were supposed to be just like Humans and Faunus. But with Salem having power of the pools all Grimm that were born were mindless, violent, puppets. The keizer energy, being of alien origin, worked in ways the Gods and their servants couldn't understand. It could transform Monster X into Keizer Ghidorah when utilized. No one could foresee that it would restore the Grimm to their true form they should have had before Salem took control. It was a one-in-a-million chance to have happened. Had Monster X's asteroid prison landed anywhere else this would not have come to be. But somehow, life had found a way.

 **So, on a quick note, my family and I were supposed to be moving out of Oklahoma to Nevada by end of June at the latest. However, some unfortunate circumstances have come to pass where we might be stuck here for _another_ year. Been a little depressed from that, and so this chapter was delayed by about a week. Gotta go job hunting since we're staying here, so next couple of chapters might have a longer wait.**

 **On a side note to that, please do NOT leave a 'review' asking when chapters are coming out. It pisses me off to no end. If you ask other stuff or make comments, THEN ask when a chapter is coming that's one thing. But I HATE when people just ask when stuff is getting updated. IDK ok. I do the best I can.**

 **Now, something else I want to tell, if you are still reading. I've dropped RWBY. Volume 6, specially that end, has finally got me to say, "I'm done." Several things are part of the issue, but the main thing is how Adam was destroyed as a character. You can disagree with me, or call me an idiot like people on Youtube have, but I'm of the opinion that they changed his character to be a cliché psycho ex bf to Blake so they could push Bmblebee. I find it highly suspect that he goes from extremist with good intentions to I can't let Blake go and kill everyone that says otherwise. Uh huh. Sure. And it just so happens to be a coincidence that suddenly two main characters are showing some possible interest, and that pairing just happens to be the same as a good deal of your fanbase? I mean I guess it makes sense to dangle the lesbian pairing in front of your LGBT fanbase, making them foam at the mouth, and say "So, hey, please buy more of our shit. We REALLY need money right now." RT claim they want to have diversity in the show. So to that I say, "Where are all the people of color? Oh, the faunus are supposed to represent them? Ok. So why are a good portion of the faunus white/light skinned? Not all of them of course, but more than the dark skinned/ethnic ones."**

 **And no, this isn't an anti-LGBT rant. I absolutely LOATHE how Harry and Ginny got together in Harry Potter, and they're a straight couple. I HATE pairings in official canon stuff that has NO MEANING whatsoever. Six books in, with Harry having pursued Cho and going with Parvati to the Yule Ball, and suddenly Ginny is his romantic interest? Despite the fact that she was doing a lot of what I call "Hinata stuff" up till then. Ok. Whatever. And don't even get me started on Ron "I abandon my best friend in two separate books cause I'm a jealous tool" Weasley. If I were Hermione I would've kicked him in the balls as hard as I could.**

 **So, if my rant or views offend you or upset you in some way and you want to stop read my story, I won't be upset with you. We all have different opinions on stuff.**


	12. Whitley Begins

**This chapter has taken WAY too long to get out. Normally I try to keep a schedule of about a month to a mouth and a week. The move to Nevada finally happened, and we've been acclimating to the new environment. It's not too bad, although the severe lack of clouds makes getting into the car like stepping into an oven. Finally found a job here too, so hope it goes well. Also, some dark stuff is going to start showing up from here on out. But it all ties into the idea of the fic; making choices and having to deal with the consequences. So, the rating might go up, but I'll have to see. This is, as the title says, a shorter chapter, but it's going to be the beginning of Whitley's story within this world. I have plans to have things with him run parallel to the main story, until it catches up. Cardin, Miltia, and Melanie will also get focus as they face Choices and are shaped by them. And, for those who waited, Cinder finally makes her appearance next chapter.**

Minisode I

 _3 years before current day_

12-year-old Whitley Schnee, youngest child of the Schnee family, stood before his father's desk with his hands behind his back. He'd been reading from his biology textbook, learning about the life cycle and traits of parasitic wasps, when Klein entered his room to inform him of his father wanting to speak with him. Part of him was irritated at being interrupted during his studies, he quite enjoyed learning about the world and it's wonders, but the other part knew better than to ignore or put off his father.

He stood silently while his father finished going over some end-of-quarter reports. To speak before being spoken too would also be a poor choice for him. His mind wandered as he tried to figure out what Jacques could want. As far as he knew he'd not done anything untoward that could've angered his father, but the man could at times be as unpredictable as a rabid dog, so he kept his guard up just to be sure.

Jacques Schnee either finished crunching his numbers, or he'd tired of messing with endless paperwork, and finally turned his attention to his only son, "Whitley, it has come to my attention that you have been focusing heavily on your academics as of late, however, you have done nothing to learn about the arts." His words, while from anyone else would sound like a concerned parent, was spoken with nothing but pure disappointment.

Keeping his face blank the young boy nodded in response to his father's statement, "Learning about science and math has taken up a lot of time father. The subjects are challenging and I'm making sure to take my time so that I fully understand the material I read. I don't have the time for arts with everything else I've been doing." It was the truth, but he was also nervous about taking up a hobby and becoming talented in it.

For the first time since Whitley entered the room Jacques frowned, "That is no excuse. Your sister Winter had already mastered the piano by the time she was your age. Weiss, while she took longer, has cultivated quite a skill for singing. You mean to tell me that you have done _nothing_ to learn some kind of sophisticated interest?"

"I am not my sisters, father. I just don't have the time for such activities. What I've been studying has really excited me."

"I don't want to hear it! You're opinion in this matter is irrelevant. I've taken the liberty of hiring a painting teacher, whom you'll be starting your first lesson with once you leave my office."

Being the 12-year-old he was, Whitley was unable to control himself from speaking his next words, "That's not fair! If I wanted to learn to paint I'd go out of my way to do so!" As he realized that he'd just yelled at his father, the youngest Schnee clamped a hand over his mouth and stepped back.

Jacques didn't say a word at first, instead staring at his son with a cold look. Silently standing and walking around his desk the head of the SDC looked down at his child as if he were a stain on his coat that needed removed. Whitley was about to apologize for his angry outburst, but never got the chance as a harsh slap to his cheek rocked him. The preteen nearly lost his footing from the force of being hit. Vision blurry from rapidly misting eyes, he was glad he couldn't make out the anger on his father's face.

Whitley was given no time to collect himself as Jacques shoved him towards the door, "Your instructor is waiting for you in your room. You will go there without delay and without further complaint." Then he forcefully grabbed his son's chin, making their eyes meet. "And the next time you talk back to me like this you will regret it. Now _go_." Shoving Whitley away the company head returned to his leather chair and resumed reviewing recent profits as if the situation hadn't even happened.

' _I hate you,'_ his thoughts whispered words he could never say aloud.

Whitley stood motionless for several more seconds before running out of his father's study. Eyes finally letting the tears fall down his pale cheeks, the boy kept his gaze to the floor, ignoring all the servants he passed along the way. Normally he'd never allow the help to see him in such a state, but with a throbbing cheek and his chest hurting trying not to sob, he just wanted to get to his room. Why did he let himself lose control like that? Why did his father hit him?! Of course as a younger child Whitley had been spanked once in a while when he did something worth being punished for, but never had his mother or father struck him like that before. He wondered, should he tell mother? Would she do something about it or just sit around with her glass of wine like she always did?

He pushed those thoughts away as he stood in front of his room. Thinking about things that wouldn't happen solved nothing. Furiously rubbing the trail of tears from his cheeks, and taking a breath to steady himself, Whitley opened his door and prepared to meet his instructor. He was not happy about his father making this choice for him. He could see it now. Some old man that talked nonstop about all the great talents he had trained and fostered over the years. The man would of course have gray hair, a dull-colored button-up shirt, with a tweed jacket on top of that with those stupid looking elbow patches. Earth-toned slacks that nearly rode up to the man's chest, held up by suspenders since old people thought those were somehow sophisticated. And to top it all off; black loafers with a brown belt. A most _heinous_ fashion no-no.

This mental image of his painting instructor was annihilated when he saw the person standing before one of his many bookcases. White low-heeled dress shoes, toned calves that led into a black pencil skirt, a nicely pressed dress shirt with a sharp collar, a shiny black hair pulled into a tight bun. _What?_ The woman turned to him and smiled at him warmly. This was not what he was expecting. She was a young woman of pale skin, clearly from some part of Atlas, and looked to be around 27 or so. The woman wore no makeup, save for a light dollop of blush and voluminous mascara.

He didn't have a chance to say anything, however, as he smile gave way to a look of concern. Heels clacking as she closed the distance between them her manicured hands reached for his face before he could stop her, "Your cheek is bruised pretty bad Whitley. What happened?" Her brown eyes scanning to see if he had any other bruises.

Still shocked by the sight of his instructor, Whitley didn't answer the question for several seconds. Blinking away the shock he jerked away from her grip, "Th-that's none of your business!"

His reaction caused her to frown, but then the woman doubled down and grabbed hold of his shoulder with one hand and turning his face with the other, "What happened to your face? This bruise almost looks like a hand print."

Whitley scowled at her persistence, but with her being 6'2" compared to his 5' he doubted he could overpower her, "My father slapped me for talking back." That was all he would say on the matter. She was a complete stranger to him, and if there was one thing he had learned growing up in this mansion it was how to keep one's mouth shut.

The woman sighed heavily and moved her hand from his chin to his injured cheek. With a focus of her aura her hand glowed green. He was about to demand what she was doing, if not for the sudden numbness is his face. Pulling her hand away she smiled at him sweetly, "Feeling better?"

Whitley touched his cheek gingerly, expecting a flash of pain, but was pleasantly surprised when all he felt was pressure on his face. Mouth open in a silent gasp the boy poked himself a little harder and still felt fine, "What did..."

"My semblance allows me to numb the body of those I touch. Sort of like taking large dose of Novocain. Difference being that it's instant and there is no adverse reactions like real medication."

The young Schnee nodded, understanding the analogy easily, "I...thank you. I appreciate it."

Her smile brightened considerably from his words. She held out her hand in greeting, "My name is Robin Son and I've been hired to teach you how to paint."

"Whitley Schnee," He shook hands with her and finally noticed she had brought a black purse and two sketchbooks, placed on his bed, "So...um….what are we going to do first then?" He supposed that if his father was going to force him to take up this talent then he would do everything he could to excel.

"First we'll start with learning how to properly draw three dimensional objects. Most people would start with cubes and pyramids, but I believe drawing from nature helps to develop fluidity in an artist. It's called the Antex technique. Then, after you have that down, the next step will be actual painting. Watercolors to start, and perhaps some matte painting," Robin smiled brightly towards her new student, "I think we're going to have a wonderful time Whitley."

 **And now, to show more effort and care for all the support you've given me….**

 **Review responses**

 **ChimaTigon: I was inspired by the Arrancar from Bleach partially, but I also have long had a like for the idea of sentient Grimm. Just a neat idea that, when done right, works quite well in fanfiction.**

 **54godamora: I appreciate the support, and I'm glad you like the fight. X will find the next one just a tad more….difficult. When the main populous learn about the evolved Grimm there will be trouble. And yes, canon is going to be VERY different. In fact, I don't mind saying that the Fall of Beacon will NOT happen. But something with just as much impact will.**

 **Oni Makai: I have never like RvB, so I'll have to take your word for it.**

 **SomeGuyOnlineXD: I've noticed that Monster X is almost never used in stories, and when he is he's killed almost always in the same chapter he's introduced in. Guess writers are taking cues from Miles and Kerry about how to use characters.**

 **Ultron emperor: If you found inspiration to write you own, I'm very happy for you. I myself was inspired by Tarbtano to write this fic, due to how amazing he has used Monster X.**

 **demonwolfhonor: I wanted to be different, so the Grimm were evolved.**

 **Forthose8675309: Thank you, well with patience and time the move finally happened.**

 **ArmadaELV: He tried, but he just couldn't keep up.**

 **Loco103: I'll keep writing RWBY stories if I come up with good ideas. Already have a couple jotted down in fact. I'm just done with the show. It reached a point where I just felt like I was being insulted.**

 **Super heavy weapons guy: Yep, it was always going to end with him winning.**

 **Noob6: I'm not sure if you're being serious or if you're insulting me.**

 **DT3: Sorry if it isn't your cup of tea.**

 **Polish Hussar: Totally agree with ya there. I'm tired of the pandering to people over decent plot and character development.**

 **Ultimate Warrior of Zera: X is going to do his thing as usual.**

 **Thorfaxdragonkin: Thanks. He may be crazy, but Henry says some wise things here and there.**

 **Saurian96: In later volumes, yeah, Adam was a bitch. When he first showed up though, he came off as the well-intentioned extremist. But RT decided to fuck him in the ass cause the shippers wanted it.**

 **Doomsdayguy12345: Same here. I've seen similar ideas where something triggers sentience in the Grimm, but those stories usually only have a couple of chapters then they die. The longer ones will almost always be about one Grimm changing, while the rest stay the same, so it gets kinda eh.**

 **Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: The Grimm tribe will represent something that has long been a tragedy with America. There's a reason I refer to them as a tribe after all.**

 **MimicLegend: I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far. Spacegodzilla is out there, and when he arrives shit is going to get _real_. This follows the Final Wars timeline, with some differences that will become apparent.**

 **SqueegeeWing: A lot of what's happened in canon was tossed without even a bit of consideration. What I want to do in this story is going to diverge, more than already, _hard_ in the next couple chapters. Remember, this takes place around the middle of Vol 2, with some things not happening yet or at all.**

 **Kaibutsu-Shin: Your words are appreciated. Admittedly I may have jumped the evolution a bit too soon, but I needed them in their human forms for what's going to happen. The people of Remnant will be quite useless against kaiju. X is going to make that very clear in the next bit.**

 **Jyoster: Thank you. Your support always helps.**

 **Mechasonic: They have all black skin, like their animal forms, with bone remnants in random places on their bodies. Like the Arrancar from Bleach. Their primitive form doesn't dictate where on them however. They also have regular eyes like humans in a variety of pupil colors.**

 **Blu IV: I don't have a Discord. Unsure how it works. Volume 3 will be very different.**

 **PoofyOhio: I would hope so. If I was getting worse I'd be really upset with myself.**

 **DragonLark: Yes my son.**

 **Nagol27: Perhaps.**

 **KaijuDracoMage: When you've read fanfiction that's literally better than canon, you know there is a major problem.**

 **Aldanias: Which that are you referring to?**

 **Guest 1: Malau has some other things preoccupying his mind.**

 **Matt: Sun and Blake is ok, but I kinda hate Blake, so I don't really think about it. I wouldn't mind Bumblebee if Barbara and Arryn didn't always try to shove it down my throat. Since Arryn says she feels like Blake is a self-insert, I'm highly skeptical of anything that character does plotwise.**

 **AtomicR4y: I have no real opinion on #KickVic because I wasn't there. This story went AU the moment X burst out of his prison. :)**

 **Guest 2: You're welcome.**

 **Guest 3: What does that even mean?**

 **AnimeGoji91: He's just trying to live his life, ya know?**

 **Silva Peres: Lost the drive for that story for the moment.**

 **Zentomon: Very much appreciated.**

 **Guest 4: Thank you.**

 **IceHeart: Clever is as clever does.**

 **Charon: Exactly.**

 **Ben56: I'm not sure how to respond to that. So I won't.**

 **The boltguard: I'm still trying to decide on a name. I'm close though. Malau has some things he's going to be doing rather soon.**

 **TJP123: Much obliged. I'm trying to convey a lot of personal feelings into the story at times.**

 **Boshwa: I'm glad you liked the idea. Killjoy? I just tell the truth and am outspoken about things that concern me.**

 **Guest 5: Well, here it is.**


	13. Super-Charger Heaven

**Life Arc, Episode 4**

" **Super-Charger Heaven"**

The Headmasters of the various academies and the politicians that ran their nations had just watched the battle between Monster X and Shiigan, and X's subsequent rescue of a large number of humans within Argus Bay. Halfway during the battle, General Ironwood and Headmaster Ozpin had both received a cache of information from Doctor Malau. Unbeknownst to them, this Malau was a copy, an energy clone created by the scientist using his semblance, sent to handle the Hawcell Site. The real Malau was currently in Argus as it were.

The information was scrolled through quickly, with the intent to go over everything more thoroughly at a later point. The most concerning issues were, of course, labeled as 'Priority', to make sure the two Headmasters could finally learn about what Monster X truly was. The data was forwarded to the other headmasters, as well as to each Councilor so that everyone could go over things at their own pace. Malau had also attached a memo with the files, stating that he estimated they had deciphered around 73% of the total data from the computer systems found at the dig site.

The image upon their scrolls of Monster X using ocean water to clean his wounded arm was the last they saw before everyone focused on the mysterious data. An unknown amount of time passed when Leonardo Lionheart cleared his throat, intent to find some answers for himself, and for the woman he feared.

"This creature, this...Monster X, appears to be quite powerful. These files show that these 'Xiliens' are ruthless tyrants that take everything they want, using this... _kaiju_ to annihilate any defenses a planet could have," The leader of Haven Academy didn't need to fake his fear over the images captured for 'field tests' of the kaiju. "If the creature is running around out there without us to stop it, then it's only a matter of time before we're all dead or being corralled like cattle into the hands of these aliens."

"Yet it has done nothing to harm us since awakening. Regardless of what it's purpose was beforehand, without being controlled by the Xiliens it appears that the creature is quite docile," Shade Academy's Headmistress, Emma Frost, waved her hand dismissively at Leonardo's paranoia, "not to mention that the tests done on-site say the meteor that housed Monster X has been there for roughly 100,000 years."

"That highly suggests the Xiliens either no longer exist or left this living weapon for dead," The Vacuo Councilor backed up his academy leader without a doubt, "and instead of attacking our cities it fought against two giant-sized grimm. I believe that affords the creature a measure of trust."

" _Trust?!_ You expect us to trust a giant monster that has been used to subjugate whole planets?" This time it was Vale's Councilor that piped in. In the month since X's appearance, he'd been finalizing everything for the Vytal Festival, including the arrival of the Amity Colosseum within the city. Just the _idea_ of the world's governments working with a giant monster was disgusting.

"The matter of the creature's fate can be decided later," Ironwood chimed, hoping to keep the conversation from devolving into an unruly argument, "right now it seems content to leave us alone. More importantly, do we tell the public the truth? Do we tell them it's an alien entity, and that aliens themselves exist or do we keep it secret and let them believe it is a grimm of some kind?"

Ozpin was about to give his opinion, to which he felt that being honest was the right way to go when Lionheart emphatically rejected the idea. "The people have enough to worry about as it is. Right now the grimm are being held at bay by our armies and our huntsmen, but if everyone is told about the existence of alien life paranoia and fear are going to skyrocket!"

Emma was of the opposite camp about the situation, however. "So long as the grimm exist people will always have a little fear. It's just a given fact of our lives. But if we tell the public there's a possible chance the kaiju is peaceful towards humans and faunus, and we can mention the mind control, it could be turned into a symbol."

"A symbol?" Ozpin was intrigued by the idea.

The headmistress nodded enthusiastically. "It's fought and killed two giant-sized grimm, and just now it has gone out of the way to rescue military personnel. If the kaiju were truly the demonic monster that _some_ of you think," Her eyes glared in the general direction of the Vale councilor's shadowed image, "I'm sure it would've destroyed Argus after the fight. With the technology that we now have access to from the meteor, if we could find some way to communicate with it we could ask it to systematically wipe out whole grimm populations. Our borders could start expanding once more as the territory is regained, without our huntsmen taking a substantial risk as they always have."

"So you want to turn this monster into some kind of attack dog?" This time it was Atlas' Councilor that spoke, "that would make our soldiers and huntsmen pretty much obsolete. Not to mention that if grimm were suddenly exterminated, Atlas' economy would nosedive."

Normally one to stand by his government and his people, Ironwood nearly punched the screen after what the man just said. "What the hell does that have to do with anything? A temporary economic setback is completely acceptable if the reason is grimm the world over being destroyed! If you or Schnee think otherwise then you have a serious problem. Our job as leaders is to care for the _people_ , not our bank accounts!"

"Jacques has nothing to do with this-"

"Doesn't he? Your term is coming up and I know for a fact that Jacques is planning on running since you can't serve another term," Well, he was about 90% sure Jacques was running, but when it came to the CEO of the SDC even 1% meant he was going to do so, "so excuse me if the idea of putting lien over lives infuriates me."

The councilor was about to snap back, were it not for Ozpin slamming his fist on his desk loudly. "Arguing like this is not going to help anyone. I believe it would be beneficial to tell the public the truth about the kaiju not being a grimm. However, until we know for certain that the Xiliens are either gone or not coming here, we will keep their existence hidden. The technological wonders from the meteor should also be kept to this group for the time being."

"Already, we have started to develop magnetic rail weaponry using technical data that's been decrypted, assault rifles and pistols for the moment, with more to come should these turn out positive results," Atlas' councilor informed everyone, knowing keeping such a thing secret would hurt relations within their group, "we have also formed a team to start work on so-called 'fusion' engines to potentially replace dust-powered ones currently in use."

"Just a moment ago you were bitching about your economy suffering due to the kaiju, but now you want to replace dust with salvaged alien tech," Emma's tone was scathing enough to start a fire, "you can't have your cake _and_ eat it Councilor."

Thankfully Ironwood's scroll went off at that moment, stalling another possible argument that would lead nowhere. Pulling the communication device from his belt the general was about to bring up the fact that the alien records mentioned a civilized planet called 'Earth' when his mind caught up to what his eyes were reading.

 _To: General Ironwood_

 _From: General Truman_

 _Special Mission 13_

 _I have deployed the 82nd Squadron to Argus. They have orders to engage the creature as a distraction, during which Colonel Tibbets will use_ IT _on the monster. The city is being ordered to evacuate at this moment. Our analysts predict successful results from this attack and the death of the monster. Additional ships needed for civilian relocation._

"NO!" Looking towards the projection of his fellow councilor Ironwood nearly screamed out his commands, "get on the horn with Truman and tell him to cancel the attack! It's too dangerous to test the bomb in a populated area."

Atlas' main council member shook his head, but not for the reasons many assumed. "What are you talking about General? General Truman is manning a fleet in orbit near the dig site to keep any potential White Fang from learning what we all have."

"A full squadron is heading to Monster X's location to deploy the atom bomb you had Polendina develop as we speak! There's no telling the number of casualties that may happen if that bomb hits so close to the city! Call. Him. Off!"

Everyone felt as if their blood was suddenly replaced with ice at this revelation. Ozpin gripped his cane so hard he was surprised it didn't start to bend. How could they do this? His hope that since the Great War's end the world would start to truly better itself, the hope that humanity would step into a new age of enlightenment, was starting to crack. Just when things began to look up for the world he'd once tried to rule, they had to make the wrong choice once more.

 **Argus**

Normally at this time of the day, there would be all sorts of hustle and bustle as people went to their jobs, or went somewhere for a social gathering, or even just went to buy groceries. Today, however, it was as if life had decided to pause itself. What a fascinating sight, many of the humans and faunus thought to themselves, and discussed with each other, to watch a giant monster clean itself in the waters of the bay. It had first washed away the blood that coated its bicep where it had been stabbed, then moved to languidly lather palm-fulls of ocean water over itself. The monster seemed content to leave them alone, paying no attention to the city or the citizens now that it was finished moving all of the Atlas military personnel to shore. For two particular Huntsmen, this was the very subject of their current discussion.

"So what do you think Scully, are you still convinced this creature is just some variant of Leviathan grimm?"

"Having seen it bleed actual blood, no, I don't think it's a grimm any longer. However, your theory of its origins is outlandish, not to mention the fact no evidence exists to prove it either."

"So what could it be then? If not an extraterrestrial being, what could it possibly be?"

"I believe, Mulder, that it is a highly altered animal that has been exposed to such large amounts of dust or aura that it changed into what it is now. Something like a pangolin or perhaps an armadillo girdled lizard. Scientists discover new things about dust all the time, and even after all these years that huntsmen have been around we still don't know all there is to know about what aura is capable of."

The huntsmen duo were currently headed towards the docks were large pools of the monster's blood had landed when it was impaled and sliced up. Already in the area having just finished a job to escort some merchants to the city, the idea to collect samples of the spilled liquid was a spur of the moment decision from the taller of the two. Fox Mulder was only 6 feet tall, yet the way he carried himself made it seem like he was pushing 7 when he got into his 'business' mode, as his partner called it. With black hair cut into a professional look that was more subdued than most huntsmen out there, intense hazel eyes, black slacks, a white button-up, a black tie, a black suit jacket, and shined dress shoes he looked more like an insurance salesman than someone trained to kill grimm. That is if you ignored the 12 gauge tactical shotgun hanging across his back. His trusty weapon, named Samantha, was equipped with an extendable stock that, when he needed something to strike with, shifted to turn the shotgun into a war ax with a 6" head. And he was never in worry about reloading during combat, as he had modified the weapon to accept a magazine as one would see on an assault rifle.

His partner, and the one to real him in when he got too excited, Dana Scully was not just a professional huntress, but a certified Medical Doctor with a Bachelor of Science degree in physics to boot. Standing at 5'3", one might think her easily intimidated due to her shorter stature. That is until she effortlessly put down every grimm to cross her, as well as the occasional criminal or rogue huntsmen that needed capture. Shoulder-length red hair framed a fair colored face and light blue eyes, while she wore a similar outfit to Mulder. Gray slacks, gray suit jacket, white button-up with a black stripe pattern, and black dress heels. She, much like her partner, cut a look more suited to someone in the business field. The dual Jian crossed on her back, named Crime & Punishment, which could combine into a double-bladed sword, contained vials of gravity dust in their handles should she need the extra firepower. While they might appear to be plain, compared to some of the truly outrageous and frankly impossible weapons some hunters wielded, it was their purpose when combined with Scully's semblance that made them deadly.

"Animals don't use complex martial arts fighting techniques Scully. How can you explain that, if not admit the creature is alien in origin?"

"I can't think of a logical explanation for the skill it has in combat. But unless we have concrete evidence I just can't subscribe to your idea, I'm sorry Mulder."

"Well, that's what we've come to collect. A blood analysis should shed some light on what exactly we're dealing with," Finally reaching the dock, the duo were surprised to see a group of men wearing khakis and black shirts that had a pumpkin design on them, the pumpkin sporting a large knife stabbed into it, armed with a variety of weapons collecting all the blood in the area. Normally that would give the veteran hunters pause, as their whole getup screamed 'highly suspect', but the fact that every single one of them shared the same face set off all the warning bells in their heads.

One of the duplicates stopped what he was doing and turned to them with a heavy frown. "What do you two want?"

Pulling out his huntsmen license and flashing it, Mulder figured it was best to get straight to the point with this one, "I'm Hunter Fox Mulder and this is Hunter Dana Scully, we were just going to grab a sample of this blood for a couple of tests. We've been ordered by the Mistralan Council to bring some back for them." He was lying about the orders of course, but dropping high-ranking names was usually a good way to placate a mercenary without resorting to a fight.

The bearded dragon faunus stared at Mulder blankly for several seconds, causing the hunters to tense in preparation for a potential fight. That tension finally abated when the faunus smirked, waving his hand towards a large splash of red blood staining the side of a city work truck. "Be my guest sir. Although, next time you should come up with a better lie. You'll get far in life if you do." Without another word he and his copies grabbed their gear and walked to the jet black bullhead parked about 50 feet away. He had enough blood, and even some tissue samples, to start his experiments. These hunters could have whatever they wanted for all he cared.

Before he could board the bullhead, Mulder called out to him with one last question, "If you don't mind me asking, could you tell us your name?"

The clone in charge, so to speak, paused to consider the request. Turning to glance at the duo one last time, he smiled at them in a way that reminded them of a grimm going for the kill, "It's Samael," with his knowledge parted the faunus joined his others and closed the bullhead door.

 _One hour earlier_

 _Aboard the stealth bullhead six mercenaries hired to follow another bullhead transporting some important biologist sat quietly amongst each other. Their temporary employer, a vixen of a woman that called herself Cinder, wished to have them keep tabs on the man, and report to her any progress he made in tracking down the giant monster that had appeared to the world recently. According to the woman, the scientist they were going to keep tabs on was being funded by lien from accounts owned by the Schnee Dust Company. When one of the men asked how she could know that, her tense body posture at first suggested she was going to lash out at him, but then she surprisingly answered. An associate she worked with had access to SDC information, financial and technological, and had seen money moving from the SDC to four unknown bank accounts._

 _The associate, an unnamed Arthur Watts, tracked the transfers to their destination, the four hunters currently with Malau, and informed Cinder so that she could handle it, as she was in the same city as the relatively unknown scientist._

 _So here they were; on a glorified recon mission to watch over a former hunter-turned-biologist/computer specialist. Whatever. A job was a job and money was money. At least it was until a weird, apple-sized pink flame entered the bullhead, passing through the metal around them like it was not even there. Weapons were raised and held defensively before the floating fire, not sure what exactly they were looking at and what to do._

 _Then the fire spoke. "_ You are in the way. _" And grew in size, changing shape until it looked like a man. The man-shaped fire suddenly blinked out and their target was standing before them, thrusting his fingers into the throats of the two guys standing closest to the door. While normally aura would stop someone from being truly harmed as long as it hadn't shattered, the man's hands were coated in black energy that completely bypassed the soul protection, and penetrated their necks in a killing blow._

 _Immediately a black, water-like substance started to cover both men, emanating from the spot Malau's hands were impaled. The other four were shocked immobile, watching in horror as the fluid covered the two completely. An instant later the substance was gone, and before them stood two more of Malau. Just like the original, the clones were wearing khaki cargo pants and a black shirt with a stabbed pumpkin on it. Without giving them a second to recover, one of the clones raised it's hand and flared it's newly acquired semblance._

 _The remaining four mercenaries felt the force of natural gravity upon them instantly increase to near-deadly levels, sending them face-first into the floor of the ship. Unable to move they were helpless as the assimilation process was repeated, adding another four semblances, as well as memories and knowledge, to Malau's power._

 _"_ Hey, what's going on back there? _" The voice of the pilot called from the cockpit. The 'original' Malau calmly opened the door and wrapped his arm around the startled man's throat. One of the powers he'd taken years before was the ability to instantly know what someone's semblance was. This man had none and in fact, had a locked aura. The lead mercenaries' memory told him it was a last-minute hire so that they could follow after him promptly. That was a sad mistake._

 _With barely an effort the pilot's head was turned nearly 180º. Sliding into the copilot's chair Malau turned the bullhead in the direction of Argus. He had some samples to collect. And once that was done, whoever this Cinder woman was would next be taken care of when he returned to Vale._

 _Present_

Watching the bullhead rise into the air and start heading towards Vale, Mulder turned to his partner to see she was putting a few Q tips with blood on them in a sealed bag. He always loved how prepared she was for work in the field. With her medical training, it was pretty much standard at this point. The lanky man was about to comment on the situation they'd just experienced when the air raid sirens all over the city went off.

 **Vale**

Cinder sat at a table far away from everyone else in the crowded cafeteria, Mercury and Emerald opposite her, sniping at each other like usual, with a frown usually reserved for private engagements marring her face. She, like everyone else in the large room, had just watched the giant monster fight. While she was not briefed on the exact details, she knew that the morphed Leviathan grimm had been specifically sent to fight the other creature. After the unfortunate failure of the Gigawolf, her master would have chosen something more suited to destruction, at least she assumed so seeing how the grimm had been changed. Now her master was 0-2 on trying to kill this thing. That didn't bode well. Not for Cinder herself or her plans to capture the rest of the Fall Maiden's power. No, it was the very likely scenario that the next time Salem spoke to her, the Grimm Queen would be in a _foul_ mood.

In addition to the possibility of having to endure such a thing, having Watts, under orders from Salem, practically force her to go out of her way to hire disposable mercenaries to track down someone that had stolen money from the Schnee Dust Company pissed her off to no end. Yes, Watts explained how hacking into unprotected security systems and scrolls, most of which were manufactured by the SDC, that the four owners of said accounts had been contacted by Samael Malau as muscle in his quest to track down the giant monster. That being said, why couldn't Watts do it himself? She'd had to sneak out after hours to accomplish the task, and was nearly caught by Glynda Goodwitch trying to enter the dorms after it was done.

The fact that this scientist, former huntsmen or not, was trying to track the monster didn't warrant risking her cover. At least, until Watts explained that the message Malau had sent to the four he'd procured said they would be working for the councils. According to the information they had on the man, Samael was supposed to be at the quarry where the monster was originally seen. _That_ got her attention. It appeared that the good doctor was playing two different agendas; lying to his hired guns that everything was legit with the government while working with said governments, despite having some ulterior motive.

So for the moment, she could relax a _little_. Knowing that in the best outcome this man would be captured and she could learn everything about what he was doing. In the worst outcome he'd simply be killed and whatever he was doing ended with him. Despite the dread she felt about how her next conversation with Salem might go, the Malau situation was well in hand, and she was very close to claiming the rest of the power she'd stolen. Things were starting to go her way.

Especially when she received a text from the leader of the men she'd hired.

 _We have captured the target and are heading back to you._

Her frown turned into a vicious smile now. Salem always talked about destiny and the paths people walked in life. It looked like hers was coming together just how she wanted.


	14. Countdown to The Path

Life Arc, Episode 5

"Countdown to The Path"

The droning sound of the evacuation siren nearly drowned everything else Mulder struggled to hear, as he and Scully struggled to make their way through a panicking crowd. Men, women, children. Human. Faunus. Everybody was running any way they could to get to safety. Terrified citizens were running to get into their cars, jumping into trucks and passing military vehicles, some of the bullheads taking off from the ground even had people hanging onto the bottom for dear life. As for the duo, they were trying to find some form of transportation for themselves. They would never stoop to the level of forcibly commandeering a vehicle from someone, but their self-preservation instincts also would never let them die without giving 110%.

"Got any ideas, Scully? The airfield is too crowded and our ride left when we first got here. Whatever is going on, I don't want to be here when it all comes to a head." He had to cover his ears for a moment as a squad of airships passed overhead, flying some kind of pattern around a suddenly defensive Monster X. Normally, the sirens would sound when a horde of grimm was on the attack. The fact that no grimm was within sight, and the hard light barrier still hadn't rebooted, meant that something else was going on. Their scrolls had no information on what it could be, so the best plan was to get out of the city. Somehow.

Plus, the recently arrived fleet of Atlasian airships maneuvered in an, obviously, aggressive manner. The hunter duo felt something was about to go down. What, exactly, that something was, remained unknown, but they didn't wish to stick around to find out.

Scully herself was a woman on a mission, determined, and not willing to let anything stop her. Slowing just enough for Mulder to catch up to her, she pointed at a building in the distance, pristine and nearly shining, with a red heart symbol on the main entrance. "That's our ticket out of here Mulder. In all the chaos, it looks like-" She was cut off as a desperate man crashed into her, trying to rob her of any valuables. He either didn't notice her weapons, or he didn't care, but Scully was having none of it. Sliding her leg behind his, and placing her forearm on his chest, the Huntress Doctor swept him off his feet and slammed him to the ground _hard_. The would-be mugger was unconscious in 1.2 seconds from his poor choice.

"-As I was saying, it looks like the medical bullhead is still on the roof of the hospital, most likely forgotten in all the panic. It's our best chance to get out of here and get in touch with someone in Mistral. This blood needs to be analyzed as soon as possible. With the military base destroyed, I'd rather we go to the city. Lionheart can provide everything we need." All around them Atlas soldiers and hunters of all kinds were directing people attempting to restore calm, but the suited duo knew such an outcome was unlikely. Especially when they saw Monster X tightening his fists and starting to take a more defensive posture. The kaiju was not pleased with the airships and bullheads running patterns around him.

Mulder was about to say something in response, if not for the blonde woman holding a baby that bumped into him, almost sending them to hard ground. Reflexes kicked in immediately, changing his footing so that he could bear the weight that hit him, and prevent the woman or her baby from falling. Helping her to steady herself, he gave her and her child a brief once-over. Despite her looking fine physically, her expression appeared to be on the verge of a breakdown, "Are you ok ma'am?"

"I-I'm trying to find my wife, but," her words were drowned out by a building exploding two blocks away. One of the bullheads had fired several missiles at Monster X, and all but three hit the kaiju, to no effect. Those three missiles struck the nearby building, an APC parked near the water's edge, and some moron's 40ft yacht taking up space in the bay, "ever since the monsters appeared I haven't been able to contact her!" Her baby was squeezing his arms around her shoulders as tight as possible, whimpers and whispers of 'Mama' lost to the wind in all the chaos.

"Where is she normally at during this time of day," Mulder firmly, but gently, pulled the mother and son over to his partner.

"She would've been at work, the CCT Relay, she's a technician there! I don't-she….I," she was at a loss for further words her panic was so severe. Scully placed her hand on the woman's arm, the one not holding up the baby, and held eye contact with the younger woman.

"My partner can track down your wife, while we get to the bullhead on top of the hospital. We'll make it out of here, I promise you that," The blonde woman said nothing for a moment, before taking a deep breath and nodding to the idea. "What's your name?"

"Saphron Cotta-Arc, and this," She rubbed her cheek against her sons," is Adrian."

Mulder pulled his weapon from his back and switched the magazine of Water Dust with one of Wind Dust, more suited to deal with potential problems from the panicking and rioting people around them. The Wind dust would function basically like concussion rounds to avoid needless deaths. "What does your wife look like?"

"Dark skin, black hair, red glasses, uhh…..she should be wearing a blue cardigan over a blue button-up, and dark pants."

"I'm on it," switching his grip on his weapon so that he could strike with the ax head. "If I need any help I'll shoot up a flare." With practiced ease, Mulder jumped atop a streetlight and began traversing the streets from above, his destination only a few minutes away.

* * *

Monster X wondered what it was these apes were attempting. The weapons they fired did nothing to him, and the missiles that hit him were like mosquito bites. Annoyed at being hassled while attempting to bathe, X swung his clawed hand at several of the airships in a feigned assault meant to scare them away. Vessels scrambled out of the way in knee-jerk reactions. They avoided the kaiju's attack, but two airships crashed into each other due to unfortunate proximity. The flaming wreckage crashed into the bay like a bowling ball, hot waves of ocean water nearly reaching the shore.

X hadn't meant for that to happen, but at the same time, he wasn't too bothered. These primitive beings would not leave him be, and he felt like that was not an unreasonable desire. Perhaps he should head to the white tundra in the distance. Odd that they had a large section of rock floating above the ground, but if they felt their city was safer in the sky, then oh well. Turning away from the sight, X was met with more ineffective explosions from the second fleet of airships coming from Atlas. Four of the ships had extremely durable cables attached to them, the other ends holding up a metal platform upon which stood five Colossus'.

X narrowed his eyes as his growing irritation was reaching its limit. The mecha being transported moved to stand shoulder to shoulder and aimed their cannons at him. It was laughable, considering each machine only came up to his knees. Did they seriously think their weapons, which did _nothing_ to him, would suddenly start working now? Five yellow beams of dust powered energy struck him in the face a second later, an explosion briefly obscuring his vision with a cloud of smoke. Once again he felt no pain, but despite that, it looked like he needed to get his point across more direct.

The pilot commanding the lead mecha yelled into his microphone with a resounding _whoop_ , snapping his fingers, somehow, despite wearing gloves. "Sensor readings show five hits on the grimm. It might be big, but nothing could've survived that!"

Of course, the sad reality of the situation was that none of the soldiers attacking X knew he was an alien kaiju. With that information still kept a secret to the headmasters and councilors, they believed in the superiority of Atlasian weapons to destroy the 'grimm'. Years of research and money culminated in the form of a mecha that could stand on par with Leviathans. Well, except for that mutated one that appeared earlier. But no matter! That minor setback just meant they had room to improve the design and weapons in newer models.

"Sir, I've got movement from the cloud," the pilot's musings were cut short by the nervous declaration. He was about to relay the order for another volley of dust beams, but the voice of his second-in-command screamed in everyone's ears. "Energy readings are going off-"

Four waving beams of yellow energy went through the airships, platform, mecha, and anything unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity. Everything was vaporized by the concentration of Keizer energy. Without a second thought, X turned to fire his graviton beams at every ship that remained in the second fleet. Beam after beam cascaded through the sky, like golden serpents seeking out their prey during a hunt. One after the other vessels were either completely obliterated, or they were crippled and fell out of the sky. Fiery, burned-out husks plunged into the ocean, carrying whatever remained of their passengers to a watery grave.

"Oh fuck!"

"It destroyed all of them."

"We should leave _now_."

"Game over man, game over."

When the five Colossi had appeared everyone felt they could at least injure the giant in some way, even if it wasn't killed. The fleet from the dig site that had started the whole thing finally began to understand that X was beyond anything they'd ever fought before. Slowly, the alien kaiju turned his attention to the motionless ships, red eyes flashing with Keizer energy. For a moment, the only movement was that of the residents of Argus, still scrambling to leave the city, until one of the pilots slammed his ship's yoke in reverse and headed away from X. Like a cascading avalanche, other airships turned towards the city in a desire not to be destroyed. At the very least, they could assist with the evacuation. Let Colonel Tibbets handle the monster, for all the good it might do.

Finally, they decided to leave him alone. Seems these primitive apes only responded to gratuitous violence. A pity, X figured, as he hadn't wanted to kill any of them. Perhaps they could learn to do otherwise eventually? Since escaping from his prison he'd just been trying to find himself. That's all he wanted. His little group of companions back at Lake Matsu just went about their days. They made life enjoyable. Watching them grow….was this what having offspring was like? It was nice. Would they keep changing? He kind of hoped so, if only to see what they would become.

Hmmm? Now that he wasn't focused on the aircraft harassing him, he noticed a horde of his companions coming towards the city. Only, they weren't the ones he'd spent time with. No. He saw familiar avian forms, along with an unknown insectoid one that varied in sizes. If they were anything like his companions they would be mindlessly aggressive, unaware of themselves. In almost three weeks the ragtag group that stayed with him was turning into a…..society? Perhaps so, as they made shelters, and each carried out some task every day. That took a bit of time, however, because he'd just tickled them with a pulse of Keizer energy. But the transference to others he'd witnessed seemed to speed the process up.

A more concentrated burst would be needed. More focused. His earliest memory was of the voices of his masters. It had been so long, but he could still remember it like it was yesterday.

 _"_ _Our kaiju….look at it. Evolution! The Keizer Energy has taken hold. I guess that slave was_ _useful_ _for something after all."_

He had not understood what anything meant then. Was he different before? Had he always been as he was, or once upon a time had his form been like the Xilians? Why did he not remember? Thoughts for another time. The plan remained, however. Keizer energy had changed him at some point in history. Keizer energy had changed those at the lake. So Keizer energy would, too, change them. X focused, reaching deep down to mold the power.

* * *

Mulder jumped atop a crashed van to get a better vantage point. The CCT tower was just two blocks away, flames escaping from a huge hole blown into the base of the structure. With the damage blocking one of the entrances, he was a bit doubtful that Terra would be inside. Possible, but not likely. Instead of staying atop the vehicle, Mulder took to the streetlights again. He turned west in the direction of the closest evacuation site. Transports were being loaded as fast as possible, but the number of evacuees brought lines of people to a standstill. That was the chance he needed.

Most people would go towards the closest evacuation checkpoint relative to themselves. So, he focused his left eye and scanned for the face described for him. While to the untrained his eye looked completely natural, those with backgrounds in the field of robotics could probably tell you the individual product name of his synthetic replacement. He'd lost his real eye during a drug bust several years before when he and Scully were just starting as partners. But that never stopped him. As it zoomed on every face in his sight, occasionally tightening resolution, or enhancing focus, he wondered what exactly was going on with these evacuations.

Usually, the sirens in major cities were used exclusively to warn of an incoming grimm invasion. Sometimes they would sound if severe weather was close enough to pose a threat but other than some darkening clouds, the day was completely normal. As normal as could be considering it had seen a fight between two giant monsters. Grimm were approaching now, but the droning noise had been going on since he arrived in the city. What were they worried about? Or was it-there!

Awkwardly standing at the side of a line of civilians was the woman he was looking for, to the east. Dropping to the ground he dashed in her direction, careful to avoid colliding into anyone. Terra jumped back in fright as Mulder came to a sliding stop before her, shotgun at the ready. Normally he would flash his credentials to take command of a government employee, but time was of the essence.

"Mrs. Cotta-Arc I'm Hunter Fox Mulder, and I've been sent by your wife to bring you to a specialized extraction point." He stood with his back to her, already planning the fastest route back to the hospital.

It took the technician a moment for her brain to catch up with the words spoken to her. But she was quick to recover, drawing in a deep breath of concern. "Is Saphron ok? What about our son, Adrian?! Is my family safe?!" The civilian blushed hard when she realized her hands had grabbed hold of Mulder and nearly dragged him off his feet during her emotional outburst.

Fox was a professional, though, and nodded at her with a happy grin, "She's with my partner right now, and your boy is doing just fine too Ma'am. I just need you to secure your arms around my neck and jump onto my back."

Terra only hesitated for a second before nodding in agreement, "So where are we heading to?" The huntsman crouched on one knee, allowing her to settle upon his back.

"South General Hospital. We'll be leaving via their medical bullhead, heading towards the city of Mistral. Medical transports are kept at maximum fuel as often as possible for emergency purposes. So we shouldn't have any issues getting to the capital. You'll be safe with us." Mulder jumped atop the streetlights again, feeling his passenger's grip tighten involuntarily. He wasn't bothered, other than a bit of pressure on his skin.

Overall the noise around them, including sirens, screaming people, and now the sound of a few grimm that were harassing everyone, Terra yelled her appreciation towards Mulder finding her. "Thank you for helping my family and I. I'm sure you have more important things to do right now, what with the city in chaos."

Mulder couldn't help but smile happily at her words. "Nonsense. We _are_ taking care of something that we need an answer to, but that won't stop us from helping those that need it. We'll do everything we can to help you."

Terra was about to respond, but her mouth slowly closed when she saw Monster X holding a glowing yellow sphere between his clawed hands. It seemed to almost be….caressing or...molding the energy ball. The monster spread his arms, the sphere growing to match, before slamming its hands together. The sphere exploded into a wave of golden light, crackling like lightning, that slammed into the swarm of nevermore and lancers.

"What was tha-"

Terra was interrupted by a Lancer as big as a horse crash into the streetlight they were about to land on. Her scream nearly tore her vocal cords when she and Mulder hit the ground hard. The sudden drop caused her bodyguard to roll onto his shoulder from momentum, unfortunately dragging her body with him as he did so. She almost didn't feel when her arm, trapped at an angle when they rolled, snapped with a crunch. Glasses missing, a line of blood sliding down her temple, Terra somehow managed to sit up, staring at her injured left forearm. Thank the spirits her bones weren't poking through the skin. Even still, she could tell from how swollen her arm was suddenly getting that both radius and ulna had been broken.

To her side, the sound of Mulder cocking his shotgun bled through the ringing in her ear. Aiming at the Lancer that was not attacking them, instead just looking at them with an almost curious tilt of its head, the suited man shouted something she could barely understand. Why hadn't he fired yet? Wait….the ringing was changing. As pain surged within her body, sending nerve signals coursing through her brain, her hearing came back without warning.

Screams from all corners around them as humans and faunus were met with grimm hitting the ground. The noises from the monsters adding to the orchestra of hell that was the panicked city. The Lancer in front of them twitched its mandibles but didn't make any aggressive movements of any kind. Just when she finally made it to her feet, Terra could hear a whisper at the back of her mind.

 _You are…..strange looking._

 _What are you?_

 _What am..._ I _?_

"What?" Mulder appeared to have heard it too. Slowly, the man lowered his shotgun, activated the mecha-shift function so that he now held an ax, keeping the melee weapon ready to swing if necessary.

 _You look different._

 _Why?_

Terra, sure she was out of her mind, said the only thing she felt summed up this situation. "Fuck."

* * *

Fuel remaining: 10%

Altitude: 26,000 feet

Whiskey: Half a bottle left

Crew: 12

Bombs: 1

Colonel Tibbets couldn't turn his eyes away from the setting sun. It was almost poetic. As the sun was closing on this day, his actions would close a chapter of peace between the kingdoms. The bomb they planned to drop was a new weapon that had been in development for years. 'To be used in the Grimmlands', was the explanation from the top brass. Dropping it on the monster might kill it, or at the very least severely injure it in some way, but the collateral damage resulting from the blast…..people were going to die. Not everyone, since he was about to pull rank and order all military vessels in Argus to draw the beast out to waters. But some would be sacrificed in the name of Atlasian might.

"Attention all military personnel within the area, this is Colonel Paul Tibbets, acting under orders of General Harry Truman. I am going to deploy a bomb designed to flatten landscapes in an attempt to kill the beast. Do everything in your power to draw it away from the shoreline within the next ten minutes. That is when the asset will be dropped. Anyone that refuses this order will be court marshaled for treason against the government. That is all."

Ten more minutes. Ten more minutes and Atlas would change the world. The Colonel tipped back the last of his whiskey in a half-caring salute. Orders were orders, and he was nothing, if not loyal.

* * *

Scully grabbed another looting rioter that came too close to her temporary charges and slammed her palm into his chest. She didn't spare him any further attention when he went flying into an overturned police car, pulling Saphron closer to avoid her getting pulled into the crowds all around them. The redhead's eyes were looking at all directions, taking in the chaos of human, faunus, and grimm that blended like watery paint. She vaguely took notice that all the airships went back out to the bay and resumed attacking the giant monster once more. Several explosions immediately followed as the creature defended itself again.

Saphron, unaccustomed to anything even halfway close to the rioting going on, leaned her head to her escort, "I-I was wondering...um...why don't we just head to Sanctum Academy? Wouldn't we be safe there? I'm just not sure...well I mean, why is the city being evacuated? No one has told us anything." She adjusted Adrian to her other shoulder, keeping her grip tight as she moved him between the two of them.

"I'm not sure why the order to evacuate has been issued. Mulder and I don't have any information on that either. If the creature was the cause, they would have sounded the siren as soon as the first one appeared. Something about this….as for Sanctum, I've worked with their headmaster and students before, and they, unfortunately, don't have the right lab equipment I need to study the blood samples I took of the creature." She put her arm in front of mother and son, stopping them from being run down by a squad of soldiers that were transporting wounded civilians on gurneys.

Once they were passed she ushered the blonde along again. "Everything about this situation is strange, so I would feel better personally if you and your family were away from all this. That energy wave the creature sent out has done _something_ to the grimm that were attacking," Almost to emphasize her point, two Nevermore stood _drinking water_ out of a decorative fountain not twenty feet away.

Adrian leaned back from his mother's shoulder to look at the avian grimm that were enjoying their drink. He was too young to know what grimm were, or why they should be feared, but his mind did know one thing. "Birdy...mama...birdy!"

Saphron, in spite of the dangers around them, cried out with a small laugh. She kissed her son's forehead three times, getting a smile from the boy in return. "Yes sweetie, birdy."

The moment was ruined when two soldiers fired their rocket launchers at the grimm duo. They exploded with tremendous force, bloody chunks of feathered flesh all over the area. A spray of blood coated the ground before the three, who all stood with shocked expressions, though Adrian's was due to seeing the 'birdies' hurt. His little lips started to quiver, burying his face into his mother's bosom.

"Birdy hurt. Mama, where birdies?"

Oh, how to explain to her infant child? Hell, she didn't understand what just happened herself. "Grimm don't bleed. I know that much about them. They also don't eat or drink." Her eyes glanced at her huntress bodyguard, seeing that she was silently staring at the bloody remains.

"No….they don't." Scully reached into her coat and pulled out 4 packaged cotton swabs. With practiced ease, she opened each of them one-by-one to collect samples of the blood left behind. She tried not to stare at the severed head of one of the Nevermore only a foot away, which was _not_ fading away like grimm always did. "This is something completely unprecedented in our history as a society. The repercussions of a development like this are going to completely change everything." DNA secured, she looked out towards Monster X, watching as he closed his fists around two more airships. Their flaming remains were dropped into the water so he could slap another away from his face.

"Let's go. We need to leave." Scully guided them forward once more. South General was just another 50 yards from them. After they were inside they could use the emergency staircases to get to the roof as fast as possible. Just a little longer, maybe ten minutes.

 **Hey everyone. Sorry about the wait on this one. Things around here have been…...crazy. Work. Enrolling into college. Work. Buying a new car. Work. And uh….work. But yeah, this story isn't dead. I'm just slower than normal this time. I hope I set up a nice narrative for the climax of this battle between Monster X and the military forces on Remnant. People had asked how the people of Remnant would stand up to this kaiju. Well, we can see not so hot.**

 **I reuploaded this chapter after fixing the problems with scene changes. I was trying to put the line in, but for some reason it kept disappearing. Finally got it to work.**


	15. Not With A Whimper

**Merry Christmas to everyone and your loved ones. Enjoy this gift, from me to you.**

* * *

" _T_ _wenty-five years later and everyone can still to this day tell you where they were when the bomb was dropped. I'm one of those who_ _could tell you what it was like t_ _o see it firsthand_ _._ _I think the worst part is that no one at the time knew_ why _this happened._ _Except_ _for_ _the councils..._ they _knew._ _"_

 _Terra_ _Cotta-Arc, being interviewed by award-winning journalist Lisa Lavender_

xxxx

"Not With a Whimper"

Dana Scully didn't let anything stop her as she power-walked into South General Hospital's East entrance with Saphron and Adrian right on her heels. With evacuations currently underway, the hospital was trying to get everyone onto the transports and out of the city, patients that were most critical being priority. As such, no one paid attention to the two women, plus baby, walking up to a wall-mounted directory.

"There," After a moment to scan the display, Scully pointed to an H symbol next to a set of elevators. "That's where our ticket out of here is."

"Isn't it dangerous to use the elevator in an emergency? You mentioned the stairs earlier," Saphron tried to block out the chaos going on around them. It only served to remind her that Terra was out there in the middle of it all.

"Normally, yes, we wouldn't use it," Scully guided her charge away from the directory and down the hallway. "But we need to leave as fast as possible. We'll have to risk it, unfortunately."

"Ok. I trust you." Her grip tightened on Adrian, who'd gone awful quiet since witnessing the death of the two Nevermore.

She too was confused, a perhaps a smidge uncomfortable, by what they'd witnessed. Bloody pieces of the grimm flying through the air, hitting the ground with a wet _splat._ There was even blood still clinging to her shoes, no sight of the evaporation that normally came with dead grimm. It was so….wrong. Everything about this day was wrong. Giant monsters, bleeding grimm, military force failing _hard_ to protect them. Saphron was mentally overwhelmed by events happening around her, made only worse by the fact Terra's location and condition were complete unknowns.

"Mama…..where Mama?" Adrian whispered as they stepped into the elevator.

Saphron could only respond with a kiss to his forehead and holding him tighter to her bosom. The sound and rumble of the elevator heading up felt soothing in its own weird way. It let her mind drift to other places. Like...like how tonight she had planned to cook a grilled bass with peas and carrots for the family. Adrian wasn't a picky eater despite his age, and fish had become one of his favorites at the dinner table. As for the vegetables, Saphron liked to cook them at least once a week just for Terra. A cute remembrance to the first time her wife kissed her.

xxxx

 _Tonight's date was going_ horribly _in Saphron's opinion. First, because of a wreck, she was almost ten minutes late before finally arriving at the restaurant they agreed to. Then her date's food had been brought out with the wrong side items. And if that wasn't enough, the open mic poetry they were hoping to enjoy at a cafe down the road had been canceled due to technical troubles. Th_ _ey both_ _still ordered coffee and cake, and while it was nice, it wasn't exactly the most romantic thirty minutes she'd experienced. Saphron had planned a night that should have played out like those novels she liked to read. Instead, the date had taken several bad turns turning it into a date straight out of one of mom's sitcoms._

 _Now, the duo found themselves walking down the street under a cloudy night sky, not a word between them. The awkwardness was so heavy that Saphron felt like burying her head in the sand a minimum of six months. The date at this point was kind of at a_ _n_ _end, with nothing else planned. The prospect of a second date didn't look good. Perhaps she would snuggle with a tub of ice cream, watching a shitty rom-com. Or-_

 _"_ _I'm sorry everything went horribly," Terra mumbled next to her, voicing the words she wanted to say. S_ _aphron_ _didn't get a chance to respond as her date started p_ _ouring_ _out words like a faucet. "At this point, I t_ _hink I_ _have a superpower that makes all my dates go bad. Every time it's the same song-and-dance. 'Make a plan, the day comes, and if only_ one _thing goes wrong it's a miracle'."_

 _Saphron wondered if her jaw could not only hit the ground but go t_ _hrough_ _it, "You too?"_

 _Terra stopped rambling, looking at her date in surprise, "What do you mean?"_

xxxx

Thank the Gods the bullhead wasn't damaged. Holding her son as tight as possible without hurting him, Saphron's vision started to tunnel as she followed Scully to the machine. The redheaded huntress pulled on the door, which of course was locked. Scully responded to this challenge by holding up her fist, which became wreathed in fire, and pierced the lock. The melted metal out of the way, the door slid open with ease. Another explosion from the harbor, unknown to them a result of the last airships being destroyed by Monster X, kicked the women into gear. Once she was inside Saphron strapped herself in while Scully headed to the cockpit. It would take a minute to warm up the engine and actually lift off. A minute was such a long time…

xxxx

 _"For me it's either that I'm so nervous I act like a complete spaz and just go on rambling tangents, or that I'm calm and collected, but nothing about the date goes right," She put her finger on her chin, looking up in thought. "Except my food if it's a dinner date. I've never had bad food on any of my dates."_

 _A giggle. Then another. Soon the woman next to her was laughing so much she actually had a hand on her gut. This laughter continued on for a whole minute. The entire time Saphron felt her self-esteem crumble more and more,_ _while_ _her irritation, in turn, start_ _ed_ _to build in tandem._ _The blonde was just about to yell, or maybe growl, at her date, when a soft hand grabbed her_ _own_ _and pulled her closer. Terra had stopped laughing and was smiling at her rather cutely._

 _"I guess we have a lot in common then. We were made for each other, like peas and carrots," Lips. Moist lips were pressed to her own now. Oh. My. Gods. But….wasn't….it...how did things go from 'Disaster' to 'I'm on first base!" w_ _ithin a_ _minute? Wait, why the fuck was she thinking about that? There was kissing to be done! Saphron reciprocated the kiss quite earnestly, drawing a not unwelcome moan from the darker girl. They could have been kissing for seconds or minutes and she wouldn't have known the difference. Or cared. Parting for air, both panting in excitement, Terra whispered something that made everything better. "It's just like my favorite novel."_

 _Yes. Terra was a keeper. And she deserved a reward for such cuteness, "Let's do that again." More kisses were shared that night, with a promise of a second date. A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one._

xxxx

Terra was the light of her life for so many years now. She and their beautiful baby boy. The gentle hum of the engines did little to cover the pounding of her pulse in her ear. Her son, strapped in next to her, cried out when the bullhead took off from the roof. Saphron let him hold onto her fingers in an attempt to calm the boy. His chubby little face met hers and didn't look away.

"It's ok Adrian. Don't cry, ok? Soon Mama will be here and we'll be out of this craziness." The child responded by pulling his mother's hand to his face, seeking comfort.

Saphron continued to focus on her son for another minute, before looking out the window to the city around below them. Fires blazed from every direction. Buildings, vehicles, crashed Dropships and Airships, even a grassy park she liked to take Adrian to. Other aircraft were filling the sky throughout the city, taking as many refugees as possible to safety. Some headed for Mistral, some headed for Vale, and so on. But the number of people still left on the ground, some starting to riot in fear at possibly being left behind, was in the range of 80,000.

The feeling of the bullhead dropping in altitude brought her senses back. Were they close to picking up Mulder and Terra? The doors rolled open, most likely by a command from the cockpit, letting in a cacophony of the chaos awaiting them. What felt like hours, but was really just two minutes, passed before a shape appeared, arcing into the cabin with something in its arms. Mulder stood before them, and in his grip was a clearly injured Terra. The bullhead remained in place, giving the duo a moment to get settled. Mulder passed an out of it Terra to Saphron, who worked faster than she thought possible to buckle her wife into the seat next to her.

A hasty sling had been applied to lessen the chance of further harming Terra's forearm, but without any splints, it would only do so much. After seating herself once more, and flashing Mulder a thankful smile, Saphron focused on her family. Things would work out. They had to.

Mulder turned to head up into the cockpit where his partner awaited him, only to pause when he noticed the Lancer that appeared in the open doorway. Saphron screamed at the sight, causing Adrian to copy her. Terra blearily looked at the monster before them, too drained to make any noise. Mulder's ax was at the ready in a flash, pulled back in preparation to slice the grimm in two. Yet, after a solid minute filled with cries from the civilians outside, the Lancer still had not struck. Was it the same one they ran into before? Perhaps Mulder could take the chance.

"You going with us?" The Huntsman lowered his weapon just enough to appear nonthreatening, but still able to swing if the grimm moved in a way he didn't like.

The Lancer tilted it's head like before, staring at the suited man in confusion. At least Mulder thought it seemed confused. It wasn't immediately trying to kill them, so that was progress.

 _Going?_

 _Where?_

There was that voice again. It sounded soft, small. Like that of a child. Potential gender couldn't be determined, as the voice held no particular quality leaning towards one or the other. Did grimm even have a gender? Mulder didn't think so. Of course, Mulder didn't think he'd hear spoken, more mental really, words from the mindless creatures. Even so, he made an executive decision based on his curiosity.

"We're going somewhere safe," Shifting the ax onto his back, Mulder pointed at Saphron, "Stay with this nice lady while I go catch up with my partner. Ok?"

… _..ok_

Slowly flying towards a _very_ nervous Saphron, the Lancer hovered before her with an unnerving stare. I mean, it didn't have eyelids so its only expression defaulted to a stare. But other than the staring it did nothing. Just waited. The blonde woman swallowed the lump in her throat and spoke up.

"I-If you don't mind, can you s-sit over there?" She pointed at the seat across from her family. "Just stay calm….please."

The Lancer eyed her hand for a moment, then followed the request. It couldn't pull the harness around itself, instead just sitting with its spindly legs folded beneath a bony thorax.

Mulder nodded at the seemingly resolved issue, pressing a button on the wall the shut the side doors. The sudden dampening of sound a grateful change to everyone. Trudging his way into the cockpit, taking his place at the copilot's chair, the suited hunter smiled at his partner while putting the headset on. Her stern expression soon melted into a satisfied grin.

"Knew you'd be fine. How're our passengers?" Scully pulled gently on the yoke, the bullhead responding at a steady pace. Now heading east, the giant creature left standing behind them, the huntress doctor started inputting the navigational data for the autopilot. Without any obstacles, it would take them around two days to arrive at Haven Academy.

"Terra has a broken arm, bad break," Mulder grimaced for a moment, before smiling at his partner just a little. "She's a tough one though. When we ran into our tag-along she just stared at it."

Scully slowly turned her gaze toward the grinning man, no longer amused by what was being said. "What tag-along?"

"Oh man, have I got a story for you. See, when we hit the ground..."

xxxx

Coco looked down at Velvet crouched in front of her camera, adjusting one more dust vial, one more setting. Numerous student teams sought a closer look, eager to watch the screen when Scarlatina finished connecting her scroll. The rabbit girl spliced in an Arc Dust crystal to complete the circuit from one to the other, and voila! Suddenly her weapon was projecting the live news feed onto the wall. It was only a screen shaped at around 100 square feet, but that was enough. At least Ruby thought so, as she squeezed her way between Yatsu and Neptune to get a front-row seat.

 _"_ _So, right now we're stuck waiting for another transport to get us out of here. I mean, if they hadn't blatantly f****d us by_ _trying to shoot Cool Hand Grimm up th_ _eir_ _and losing all there ships."_ A human woman shouted angrily at the reporter wanting to get her opinion of the situation.

Jung Fleurie pulled his microphone back in complete shock, turning to his camerawoman, a ferret faunus from Menagerie, " _Oh, we can't say that on the news. Uh, so right now everything's kind of calmed to a standstill. Well, maybe calm isn't the word I'd use, more like just stuck and irritated…."_

The faunus woman started pulling her hand across her throat, trying to get him to shut up.

"… _..it would be like when you're in heavy traffic and all you want to do is punch the guy who cut you off two minutes ago. Cause he's changing lanes every five seconds and, OF COURSE, he isn't using his left and right indicators..."_

" _And maybe you could stop talking now_ ," she kind of didn't care if the scroll picked up her voice there.

"… _...and then the a*****e in the big, lifted truck has to ride your ass. Gets all pissed off because you don't want to drive 20 over the limit….."_

" _And that's all fo_ _r Jung Fleurie_ ," The camera panned to a young, tanned woman with ferret ears atop her buzzed head, " _Right now, nothing out here's calm. There_ _are_ _no airships_ _anywhere in sight. All of' em are either gone or destroyed by that_ _m_ _onster out there_."

Team RWBY watched the scene change to Argus Bay where said kaiju was standing tall amid the wreckage of ¼ Atlas's military might. The mode had swung harder than an angry drunk. What had first been cheering for the giant Monster as it destroyed the other one, turned into shock and confusion when Atlas vessels tried to kill it. Ruby looked all around her, trying to see how her older classmates were handling this. Now….now everyone was either staring in fearful awe or enraged tears.

People were dead. People were dead and nothing could fix that. But whom to blame? What to blame? Shiigan for attacking the city? X for finishing them off? Somehow the temperature in the cafeteria was climbing. Other than the sounds playing from scrolls all around.

The scene shifted back to the young woman once more, fixing her hand-me-down yellow coat together with its stained strap, " _He hasn't attacked us, didn't attack in the first place."_ She frowned for a moment, looking at her coworker having a meltdown, at the men and women around her getting into fistfights over 'cutting in the rescue line'.

When she woke this morning and began getting ready for her job, all she could think about was what she was going to wear on her date tonight. Would it be the knee-high boots or glossy heels? He liked her coat a lot, despite the tears that marred its surface. And she _had_ just bought those new glasses. Retro-style, with a square frame, and a wonderful shade of neon pink. Now? With the evacuations, there would be no date. No seafood dinner. No _overtime_ with some guaranteed cunnilingus. She looked up to the clouds above, then tilted her head in confusion.

" _What is that?_ " The scene changed once more, showing a dark object falling towards Monster X. The kaiju himself looked up, alerted by the sound of the bomb traveling through the air. Said bomb, dropped by _The Wregretful_ , was a prototype weapon Atlas wanted to bring to the forefront of the war with the Grimm.

And what worse target than a kaiju.

Three seconds later, impacting the alien kaiju's face, did the bomb explode. The sky _cracked_ with a flash of fire, with enough force to split and rend the clouds instantly. An eardrum- shattering bang sent many to their hands and knees. Everyone could feel the air around them rapidly turn scorching. Life was 110% more miserable than five seconds ago.

The yellow-coated woman stumbled to her feet, rushing to aim her scroll at the epicenter. X was shielding his face from the blast, which itself was coming toward her location like hell given form.

" _Oh Go-_ " The screen turned to noisy static as the connection was lost. All around the world people watched in shock, knowing what had just happened, but not comprehending the situation.

Ruby herself stared at the screen in a stupor. Had….had that really just happened? She took a step back without meaning to, confused and upset at what they'd just witnessed. Her back met with Yang's chest, strong arms full of warmth and love encircling her shoulders.

"Yang, why did that happen? That was a bomb. I know a lot about military-grade weapons, and only Atlas makes weapons like that. I-I-I-I mean, why would Atlas use a bomb where people c-could get huRT," Tears pooled in her silver eyes, a choking sob cutting off any further words. Soft hands held her face, Weiss' pale visage blocking her view of the static-filled screen.

"Ruby, I need you to take a slow, deep breath. Breath in," Weiss breathed in, Ruby hesitatingly doing the same. "And out." The partners let out the CO2 just as slowly. It helped just the slightest amount in trying to bring Ruby's heart rate down.

Yang gently pulled her sister away from the upset crowd of students, guiding her back to the table they'd been eating lunch at. What remained of their meals had long since gone cold, yet none of them cared. Ruby kept her breathing slow and steady like her partner wanted. It helped focus her mind, her thoughts organized in a way that Ruby felt gave her some ground to start. Taking one more deep, even, breath she looked to her team.

"I don't know why that just happened, but I _do_ know that there's nothing I can do about it. Not right now, if ever. I-I think right now we should go to our next class and try not to focus on this."

"Can we really do that?" Blake nearly jumped out of her seat from the vicious glare her blonde partner sent her way. "I'm not trying to upset anyone further. But we just saw the remaining population of a city wiped out by a bomb that was possibly dropped by Atlas. Do you guys understand what that means?"

"War," Weiss' voice was a near whisper, yet everyone within ten feet heard her. "All those deaths, depending on the circumstances…..war could be declared within a day if Mistral chose to do so. They'd have the legal and moral right after what happened. If Atlas is responsible for this, that is."

"We'll talk about it back in the dorm," Yang's tone was quite final. "after we've had time to calm down. I like Ruby's idea to go to class and worry about this later. There's nothing we can do right now, so there's no use upsetting ourselves any further." Weiss and Blake nodded in agreement more out of fear Yang would smack the shit out of them than principle. Yes, they could see her point how, really, there was nothing the team could do other than speculate potential fallout. It didn't change the fact Ruby clearly needed to let out her emotions, not bottle them for a few more hours. The monochromatic duo stayed silent however, watching the elder sister hold onto the fifteen-year-old.

xxxx

X finally blinked the spots out of his vision, waving his clawed hand through the lingering residue of the Dust bomb that exploded in his face. He had no idea what these primitive beings were thinking by attacking him with it. Compared to nearly all other civilizations he had encountered, their weapon was _shit_. Less: damage his body in any way whatsoever, more: I can't see anything for about a minute. How utterly pointless.

His own health wasn't the issue, however. Now able to see X's eyes scanned the large city he had protected from that other kaiju. Quick steps brought him to the edge of the docks, focus locked in, not on the collapsed buildings, but on the remains of the natives. Many were burnt beyond recognition, gender or age impossible to determine. The carcasses of those he'd used Keizer energy on looked little more than blackened husks partially melted into the environment. Stepping into the city proper only revealed more dead on every street or alley. Monster X could feel his breath begin to shorten, hands twitching, as the same sight greeted him no matter where he looked.

Dead humans. Dead faunus. Dead grimm. Dead. Dead. Dead. It made his head hurt. These damn dirty humans just nullified the work he put in fighting Shiigan, seeing as how they did the same thing he had been in the middle of not thirty minutes ago. And his little ones. His little ones that did nothing to deserve such a violent, sudden death. Why? Why? WHY?! What purpose was served from these savage beings doing this? X had seen plenty of death and destruction while under the Xiliens. But things were supposed to be different now! Things…

His hands gripped his armored skull, trying to kill the painful headache that was growing worse by the second. Deep within his chest, Keizer energy stirred, reacting to his spiraling emotional state. " **Grrrrrmmmmm** ," Would everything in his existence end in pain and misery? It was, it…..

White armor began to tinge gold, skin turned from pitch black to more of a bluish shade. Arcs of yellow energy jumping all over his body, sometimes striking the remains of the surrounding structures and collapsing them. Falling to one knee X tried to contain the power that threatened to take over. He could remember a time when the Keizer didn't exist. Before, at the start of his enslavement. His power source didn't turn him into that three-headed _thing_. _It_ came later after the Xiliens experimented on his body, exposing him bit by bit to the DNA of some ancient space dragon. The outcome of doing this had conditioned his other half to emerge with almost no prodding, so long as any negative emotions built up enough. Then the Xiliens found a way to force it to come out on command, without his say.

He couldn't let that happen. Not here. Not now. This planet, this untouched world his former masters had missed, had to survive. But the _stupid_ beings and their _weapons_ , and their desire to fight him for _no reason_. Noooooo….

Looking to the sky above suddenly filled with clouds, body surrounded by a pulsing aura. Monster X screamed the call of a Ghidorah. A sound not heard within the universe in millennia. A sound like that of a million tortured souls, crying out in pain. Begging for death.

" **Raaaaggggghhhhh"**

Monster X used the rapidly slipping control to soar into the sky, breaking through the atmosphere and away from Remnant's gravitational pull. The shattered moon was his destination. If he couldn't hold the Ghidorah within, at least no one would suffer. Angry as he was with the apes, X had committed enough genocide to last ten lifetimes. He would rather not do it again.

xxxx

Menagerie. Tropical paradise if one just glanced at the land from afar. Warm beaches, exotic food, and strange plant life growing naturally within sight of crystal clear ocean waters. Yet if you went further inland, that gilded image became an illusion. Over 60% of the island was unexplored due to the rough terrain that had not yet been settled. Grimm roamed those barren expanses unchallenged, making settlement even more of a challenge.

As such, it was little wonder that no one knew of the giant egg hidden with a mountain near the center of the island. The egg had remained dormant for nearly 50,000 years, laid by its dying mother to continue the cycle of Life. It had yet to hatch in all that time due to the amount of death and pain caused by the Brother Gods and their followers. But now, hearing the call of a Ghidorah, it's eternal enemy, the creature within stirred. Teal colored light sparked within the egg, and a soft trill sounded, seeking out her voice. Seeking out her Shobijin.


	16. Notice to All

**So, I have decided that a reboot of my story was needed. Yes, the last 2-3 chapters were real good I think, but most of the early parts were written while I was suffering from depression and addiction. I wanted to have actual plot planned out and intertwining stories, but I stretched my writing in bad ways, didn't really do what I was aiming for. So now I'll be focusing on certain aspects in more detail, and not putting stuff up just for the sake of stuff happening.**

 **F** **or everyone that has been with me since the beginning, and for those that have joined along the ride, thank you. Truly, thank you for reading this far. If my decision to reboot and upload a rewrite gives you a feeling of wishing to leave, I do apologize. Thank you for sticking with this Guy for as long as you have. You are appreciated. Honest. If you can stick with the new story, and let me know where I'm falling behind of my writing, I also thank you. Anyone willing to read something from my crazy head, I have always been thankful.**

 **N** **ew version will be up, titled The Power of Choice: Redux**


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